The Slayer and The Witch
by Mobius98
Summary: A demon slayer is supposed to eradicate demons wherever they are found; no mercy, no regret. What happens when a slayer comes to Jump City pursuing a dangerous demon and finds Raven, fighting for the side of the righteous? Complications happen. A long tale of the Titans growing up and the threats they will face in the transition. AU after a certain point, back from a long break.
1. Dangerous Night

Disclaimer: I do not own Teen Titans, but damnit have I dropped some money DC comics.

AN: This story begins in the gap between Season 1 and 2, and will jump to the end of Season 4, from then on it will be an AU of Season 5 and beyond.

BACK FOR GOOD FROM A HUGE HIATUS

The Slayer and the Witch

Chapter 1: Dangerous Night

Jump City, 12:56 A.M

...

_There was something loose in Jump City._

The thick night air smothered Jump City's nightlife, an unseasonal chill biting at the fingers of any who braved the streets. The moon, the blood red of hunters, was obscured by black clouds, leaving the streetlights alone to fight the unseasonal mist. A great and unnatural dread filled Jump City, driving all but the very foolish indoors. It was a fear as old as the first fires and cave paintings, the fear of the unseen predator in the dark, the fear of the unnatural and of the _maleificarum_.

All of this was lost upon Allison Drey, art student at Jump City University. She dragged her scrawny terrier by the leash to where the dog normally did his business. Her mix of empty threats and generous promises doing little to bring the dog to heel. "Come on Maxwell, I have other things to do besides walking you," Allison complained. Eventually she sighed with exasperation and picked up Maxwell from the ground. The dog squirmed wildly in her arms but Allison clamped down tightly and managed to carry the dog to his usual streetlight, which was situated near a dark alleyway between an office complex and a warehouse. "There you go, now pee already so we can get back to the apartment," Allison ordered sternly, roughly nudging the quivering dog with her foot.

Instead of being cowed by the kick, Maxwell tried to bolt a direct line away from the streetlight. He managed to get off the curb before Allison yanked hard on the leash and began to drag the yelping terrier back towards her, unaware of the shadows detaching from the narrow alley behind her.

"Goddamnit Maxwell, come here and-"

A harsh clicking sound interrupted her angry tirade. Allison spun around in time to see a vast _thing_ emerging from the alleyway, four bladed limbs uncurled from its insectile body and clacked together with a sound like dry bones. Maxwell fled as the _maleificarum_ loomed over the frozen Allison. Enormous mandibles opened to reveal a circular maw filled with fangs. Allison managed to scream only for a second before the demon lunged forward and ended it with sickening crunch.

There was a brief slobbering sound of the art student being devoured before the night regained its silence.

...

Titans Tower

_There was something loose in Jump City._

Titans Tower was as dark as the city it protected, the majority of the Teen Titans had already retired to their respective rooms for well-deserved rest. All except Raven of course. The quiet empath lay curled up on her bed, her mind devouring one of her many books on the occult. She turned another page of _Meditations on Other Spheres,_ by Kyril Sinnderman.

"_Of course there are other worlds than this one, universes to be exact, separated by the Source's _Faltine_. A wall of power to prevent the myriad universes from falling into the hands of Khaoos. It is easy to look, to scry, beyond the _Faltine_, for it is like a wall of glass." _There was a blotchy spot of red-brown on the ancient book's page, nearly obscuring the next sentence. "_However_, t_raveling between the universes is difficult. It would require an item of great power to breach the wall: the Hand of Ungura, the Eye of Nihil, or the Idol of Kulkoth." _Another splotch on the page. _"The traveler must also know exactly where he is traveling to or he can be lost to the Aether and be consumed by wyrrd creatures of nature most foul, the daemons of the-''_

Another splotch appeared on the page, the droplet of blood splattering and obscuring the rest of the sentence. She brushed the spot with her hand, unaware of it's origin. "Hngh!" Raven sputtered as her nosebleed suddenly turned torrential, blood gushing from her nose and covering the book and bed sheets. She tried to halt the flow with her hands before giving up and flailing for a tissue box across the room with her powers. The tissue box was halfway to the bed when the full force of Allison's psychic death scream, amplified by the demon that had killed her, struck Raven's mind like a sledgehammer. Raven screamed as the exquisite horror of being eaten alive seared her brain. The mattress rushed up to meet her face as she fell into darkness.

She woke up ten minutes later. Her thrashing limbs had turned the bed into a mess of sheets and drying blood, Kyril Sinnderman's book was nowhere to be seen. Shaking, Raven manage to reach out the intercom access next to her bed. She triggered it on her second try and in a hoarse voice managed to mutter something into it.

Alarms began to wail throughout the tower.

...

The T-Car sped through the deserted city streets. Robin, former sidekick to Batman himself and leader of the Titans, appraised his team's readiness. Cyborg sat in the driver's seat, calm and controlled as he follows Raven's vague instructions. His cybernetic biology meant that the late hour would have little to no effect on his combat prowess. Satisfied, Robin turned his gaze onto the other members of his team. Starfire, the teenaged Tamaranean, sat in the backseat behind Robin. She was tired and drawn, but her pretty face lit up with a smile when she noticed Robin's gaze. Robin managed a half-smile and a nod back to her.

Beast Boy, the green shapeshifter and youngest member of the team was in the middle seat between Starfire and Raven. He had fallen back asleep, his head lolling back and forth according to the turns the T-Car made. Robin rolled his eyes in exasperation, causing Starfire to giggle. Raven looked over at the sudden laughter before returning her focus to whatever was passing by the window at that very moment. The half-demon sorcerer had said next to nothing after explaining the murder she had sensed. Her leotard and face were still smeared with small spots of blood, and her normally pale skin had taken on an unhealthy gray pallor.

"This is the street." Raven announced suddenly, causing Cyborg to brake in surprise. Beast Boy's head lurched forward and banged against Robin's seat comically. "OW! What's wrong, why are we stopping?" Beast Boy asked groggily, rubbing his forehead.

"We're here BB," replied Cyborg, as he and the rest of the team clambered out of the car. The team had finally reached the street Allison had met her demise in.

...

Further along the street, Jon shivered on the second story window ledge he was perched upon. His cloak, a gift from Doctor Fate, and the light shorts and shirt underneath did little to guard against the chill. The cloak's enchantments however were reJonably useful in keeping him hidden from prying eyes and Jon was thankful enough for that. He didn't mind the cold really, it kept his senses sharp. Those senses, both mortal and supernatural, were currently telling Jon that there was a _maleficarum_, or demon in other words, in the alleyway across the street. He was almost certain it was a Lictor, a predatory demon that fed off its victim's emotions as much as it did on their flesh and blood.

The only problem was that a Lictor was an ambush predator, and being holed up in an alleyway was the perfect place for it to make a stand against someone like Jon. He was a Paladin, one of the few that remained active in the ancient order of demon slayers. As powerful as Jon was, a Lictor who had just eaten, the blood stains near the streetlight a testament to that, would be a difficult fight. Plus, there was much more to be this night. Jon would need his strength.

And so Jon waited, hoping his entire body did not fall asleep before the Lictor finally felt safe enough to come out. Then Jon would spring an ambush of his own. His nemesis blade, Oath, was charged with anticipation...

He jumped at the sound of an approaching car.

...

"What, already? Can't we go home? Why do we even need to be out here? Can't it wait till morning, its spooky out tonight..." Beast Boy whined as he shivered in the cold.

Robin opened his mouth to reprimand Beast Boy but hesitated. The shapeshifter was right, it was spooky out. The street was nearly pitch black, flickering streetlights and the T-Car's headlights the only sources of illumination. The unnatural mist also cut visibility down drastically. Not the ideal weather to hunt a murderer in. "There's a killer out here team and we will bring him to justice.'' Robin declared as the hesitation passed and his training kicked in. "He's still here, right Raven?"

Raven nodded, not bothering to announce that the killer felt less like a _he_ and more like an _it_. The presence was a constant ache in her head and she had had little trouble tracking leading the team to the street. Now however, she could barely sense it. Like the hermit crabs Starfire always delighted in bringing back to the tower, it was trying to scuttle away and hide its presence from the psychic touch of Raven's mind. It had not left the street, that was certain, but Raven was not able pinpoint its location. And unfortunately, it was a long street...

The teenaged superheroes moved slowly down the street. "Alright I'm really freakin' out here now, I'll go wait in the car..." Beast Boy squeaked, turning back to the car only to be stopped by Robin.

"Pull it together Beast Boy, we need you on this. Try and pick up a scent." Robin said encouragingly. Beast Boy still looked terrified but managed to transform into a green bloodhound. He took the lead, albeit with his tail now literally between his legs.

Robin turned to Raven. "Do you know anything that could be causing..." he gestured vaguely with one hand, "all this?"

Raven took a moment before responding. Despite Robin's vagueness, she knew what he was referring too. The weather, the creeping dreaded that was affecting all of them, including her. The very specific way Allison Drey had been murdered. It all pointed to one thing.

"A demon." Raven realized, worried now more than ever. An encounter with a demon could have many negative repercussions for her. It could reveal her own demonic heritage out of spite or in an attempt to sow discord in the team. Depending on its power, it could even use her own blood to corrupt her...

Robin's eyes widened in fear. "A demon? Are you sure?" He demanded with a hint of fear, no training Batman had ever given him would prepare for the demonic.

Raven pulled back her hood to massage her temples before answering. The pain was intensifying as well as another sensation. She felt like she was approaching too close to a fire. It was a good heat, a welcome heat in a night like this. However, her demon half recoiled in fear from it.

"Raven, are you sure?" Robin asked again.

She nodded gravely. "Positive."

...

Jon stiffened as the Teen Titans came closer to his hiding spot and tried to match their appearances from the information Zatanna had given him. The tall fusion of man and machine obviously had to be Cyborg. While Beast Boy was the one who had transformed into the green dog and Starfire was the pretty alien girl in purple. He knew Robin of course, having worked alongside the boy wonder and Batman the previous year. Jon had actually sent Robin a message the night before, warning the Titans of his arrival and requesting aid in dealing with _her_.

He wondered suddenly if Robin had actually received the message.

Then he noticed the girl Robin was next too. She was beautiful in dark way, dressed in a dark blue cloak and an even darker leotard. Besides the obvious reasons why a teen like Jon would stare, there was another reason he did. She gave off raw waves of power to his supernatural senses, a mixture of magical and demonic energy that set his teeth on edge.

She was obviously a powerful sorceress, maybe even a half-demon. Jon was suddenly curious to know if Robin really knew what kind of teammates he had...

...

"I am not the one to do the complaining, but I must agree with Beast Boy." Starfire said, floating lazily above the pavement, "can we go home now?"

Robin held up a hand to quiet her, he had found something. He crouched down at the base of a streetlight, his back to the dark alleyway. Ever the detective, he dabbed a gloved finger into a puddle that the mist and light diffusion had rendered black and indistinct. It took him only a second to realize what it was as a coppery smell reached his nose. "It's blood." Robin announced grimly, now realizing that the surrounding sidewalk was covered with it. The mist, hazy lighting and the pervading dread had disguised the fact the Titans were all standing in the lifeblood of Allison Drey.

Starfire squealed in distress and flew higher into the air. Beast Boy, on the other hand, managed only one step backwards before vomiting into the street. Blood and his vegetarian ideals did not get along well. Cyborg recoiled in shock but kept it under control, "oh man..."

Raven didn't say anything, she had known all along what they would find but it didn't help the sick feeling in her stomach. She looked over at Robin, her mouth open to form some sort of apology. She only managed to scream instead when she caught sight of what was behind Robin. The Lictor had been emerging with infinite slowness behind Robin, mandibles open to devour the hero. On instinct Robin leapt forward at the sound of Raven's scream, barely avoiding the lunge of the demon's head. It smashed apart the sidewalk, cheated of its intended target and issued a piercing screech of frustration. The Titans fell back from the abomination as it moved out of the concealing shadows.

The Lictor was at least twelve feet tall and had a segmented body like an insect's that was easily double the size of Cyborg. A small abdomen that hung between four wide-spread, walking limbs; a massive armored thorax supported four walking limbs and four bladed talons; and a wedge-shaped head with a five eyes arranged asymmetrically and a massive set of mandibles.

"Can we go home now?" Beast Boy squealed in fear as he hid behind Cyborg.

"What is that thing?..." Cyborg asked, dumbfounded. The Lictor stalked forward slowly, hissing in rage.

"A demon.''Raven answered, pulling up her hood and readying herself for the coming battle. She was still shocked that there was an actual demon loose in Jump City.

"It doesn't matter what it is." Robin declared, his leadership reasserting itself over the team's fear. "It's killed innocents. Bring it down! Titans, Go!"

The Lictor let out a piercing screech as it charged forward, talons slicing the air. The Titans splintered under the beast's assault, each member fleeing their own way. They still managed to throw a barrage of firepower at the demon. Explosive disks, sonic energy, starbolts and blasts of dark power pelted the Lictor and staggered it. "Keep hitting it!" Robin yelled, throwing his bladed wingdings at the demon. They bounced off ineffectively, leaving only small scratches in its chitinous exoskeleton.

The Lictor screeched again as its mismatched eyes focused on Robin and it scuttled forward rapidly, blade arms swinging for his neck. But before the demon could close the distance, there was a solid WHAM of an impact as Beast Boy, in the form of a triceratops, slammed into the Lictor's side. The demon's blade arms scratched furiously on Beast Boy's horned crest until they hooked behind the shield-head of the triceratops. Pivoting sharply, the Lictor _threw_ the 10-ton dinosaur down the street. Beast Boy managed to revert to his human form before landing hard on the asphalt, dazed and out of the fight.

The Lictor resumed its charge at Robin, but before it reached the hero, the ground beneath Robin turned black and Raven teleported him out of harm's way.

Cyborg and Starfire continued to fire at the demon as Raven released Robin from the cold embrace of her soul-self. "Do you know anything that could stop that thing? A spell or anything?" Robin demanded, turning back to Raven.

"There is one thing..." Raven admitted, thinking back to the vast amounts of occult lore she studied.

"Do it!" Robin ordered before rejoining the fight to support Cyborg and Starfire, who were only succeeding in keeping the demon at bay.

Raven followed after him, desperately racking her brain for the incantation required for the Eighth Rite of Banishment. "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos!" Raven chanted, seizing the entirety of the Lictor with her soul-self. It writhed in the field of dark energy, sending jolts of pain through Raven's mind. Ignoring the discomfort, she forced herself to say the torturous incantation. Each syllable was dragged from her throat like a shard of glass. The pain was extreme but one misstep and the Titans would suffer a fate far worse than any the Lictor could inflict upon them.

As Raven progressed through the incantation, a sphere of pure white energy began to grow between her and the demon. This and the incantation sent the Lictor into further spasms of rage, sending hairline cracks through containing field of darkness.

"Raven, I do not think you can restrain it... Raven!" Starfire screamed, as the rest of the Titans, Beast Boy included ran forward to help. With the sound of shattering glass, the Lictor broke the energy field. The feedback destroyed Raven's concentration and she stumbled on the incantation. Before she could begin again, the glowing white sphere detonated with the force of a bomb. The blast tossed the Lictor and Titans away like rag dolls. Raven was thrown backwards into a parked car and she fell once more into darkness.

...

When Raven woke, there were no sign of the other Titans. Smoke rose from the deep crater that had been blasted into the street. She tried to get to her feet but slumped back down, her concussed skull ringing and her vision spinning crazily. There was a furious screech and Raven twisted to see the Lictor, wounded from the blast, staggering straight at her. She scrabbled backwards, crying out in terror. The Lictor filled her vision as it raised its talons high.

Raven closed her eyes...

There was a sharp clang of talons striking metal.

She opened her eyes.

A shimmering sword had snapped into existence to catch the talons. Its three foot blade, as wide as Cyborg's fist, was silver with artful streaks of cyan and gold running through it. There was a sudden flood of warmth through Raven as the figure wielding the sword appeared, the enchantments hiding him from sight fading. "Mine." The newcomer declared calmly, effortlessly holding the demon's strength at bay. Raven saw the rest of the Titans scrambling out of the mist as they recovered from the blast.

The Lictor lurched back and screeched again, but this time with an edge of fear. Raven scrambled out of the way as the demon attacked the newcomer. Scything talons sought to cut the figure down but the sword blocked every attack. The newcomer and the demon exchanged seemingly a blow a second, their movements almost too fast for Raven to follow. The newcomer gave ground steadily before the Lictor's assault, before suddenly stepping forward to attack. The blade swept up almost lazily, but instead of parrying he aimed for the non-bladed part of the talon that connected to the demon's thorax. The Lictor keened in pain as the blade sliced, all four of its talons flying into the air.

Blind with rage, the Lictor lunged forward with its jaw to devour the newcomer. With a bark of laughter, the newcomer contemptuously backhanded the massive demon across the face with his free hand. The blow cracked chitin and knocked the Lictor sideways. The newcomer leapt onto the demon's back, his sword disappearing in a flash of light.

The Lictor bucked furiously, trying to dislodge its attacker, but the newcomer hammered down onto the demon's back with both fists and sent to crashing to the ground. In response, its neck coiled around, growing with new mass, and it tried to bite again at the cloaked figure, who caught the demon's two mandibles with his bare hands. With a grunt of effort and a spray of demonic ichor, he ripped the hooked mandibles from the Lictor's head. It gave a gurgling cry from its ruin of a mouth before the newcomer plunged the two mandibles into its head, finally silencing it.

...

Raven looked up from her concussed haze to see the newcomer looming over her. It was like standing next to a fire, warm and comforting but filled destructive potential. He said something to her but it was lost to the ringing in her skull. "What?" She yelled. The newcomer held out a hand in response, which she took gratefully. Warmth spread through the slight contact, Her concussion fading away almost instantly as the newcomer's power revitalized Raven.

"I said, 'Either the insane or the extremely brave try to banish a Lictor like that'." The newcomer repeated with a chuckle as he helped Raven to her feet. He was looking at her with an air of surprise, head tilted slightly to the side. Almost as if he had realized something...

She blushed slightly, wrong footed by his presence and grateful for her concealing hood. "Th-thanks, I guess," Raven replied, staring at the newcomer in shock, "That was certainly impressive" She managed to say, staring from the dead Lictor to the newcomer. "And you are?"

The newcomer pulled back his hood to reveal clear green eyes set in an almost aristocratically handsome face topped with short brown hair. He was powerfully muscled, taller and more physically imposing than Robin or Beast Boy but still nowhere near Cyborg's mechanical bulk. "Jon of the Paladins at your service," Jon replied, cracking a nervous grin as he introduced himself to Raven and the rest of the Titans as they gathered about him. Raven's eyes widened at the word 'Paladin' and she slowly drifted away as the rest of the Titans surrounded Jon.

"Whoa dude! That was amazing! The way you just smacked it across the face!"" Beast Boy yelled, as Cyborg nodded on approvingly.

"Yes! Truly you are inspiring the awe!" Starfire exclaimed as she hovered around Jon, nearly wrenching his arm out of his socket with an overly exuberant handshake. "My name is Starfire and I most be be like the George that is curious and ask you: where do you come from, how did you get here, what is your favorite chocolate covered treat, and can we be friends?" She fired off rapidly, causing Jon to take a small step back.

"Err, New York, Zee's teleportation spell, Reese's peanut butter cups, and sure! As long as you take the handshakes down a notch..." Jon answered as he tried to restore feeling to his arm.

"Oh glorious!" Starfire proclaimed as she twirled about in the air joyfully.

"Jon! I didn't realize you were arriving tonight." Robin said, surprised and pleased at the sight of an old friend.

Jon grinned and shook Robin's offered hand. "Oh you did get the message? Good to know you still bother to check the old email account. So this is your team?" Jon asked, indicating the Titans.

"Yessir, the Teen Titans!" Robin replied proudly, he had come a long a way since he had been Batman's sidekick and was eager to show it. "Cyborg, Beast Boy, and I guess you've already met Starfire and Raven." Robin pointed out each of the Titans in turn. Each waved or gave some sort of friendly greeting. All except Raven, who pointedly avoided making eye contact with Jon.

"Impressive, you all will be Justice Leaguers yet." Jon complimented, his easy camaraderie setting the Titans at ease.

"Says the guy who took down... whatever that thing was." Cyborg said.

"A Lictor, it's a kind of demon. Nasty stuff, but it is my job after all. Wish I had gotten here sooner though..." Jon replied regretfully.

"Was it the reason why you came to Jump City? You mentioned a threat." Robin asked.

Jon's face hardened at the question. "Unfortunately no, I'm after someone... something, much worse... Do you guys have a base or a safe place we could go to? These streets aren't safe tonight... I'll explain everything there."

"A base? Please, we've got the biggest, most high-tech hangout on the west coast! Come on, we'll head back to the tower." Cyborg declared.

"Oh yes! You will love the tower new friend! You shall receive the tour that is most grand!" Starfire added on as Cyborg and her began to drag Jon to the T-car.

"About time, tonight is wayyy too creepy. Guys! Wait up!" Beast Boy yelled as he chased after the trio.

Robin made to follow them before he noticed Raven lagging behind. "Is something wrong?"

Raven looked up from the remains of the Lictor, face hidden in the shadows of her cloak. "I... Who is this guy Robin?"

"A friend from before I came to Jump City. He helped Batman and I break up a cult that was preying on teens in Gotham. Tagged along with Zatanna and Dr. Fate since then I think." Robin answered. "Why do you want to know?"

"Its nothing." Raven replied curtly. The last of the lictor dissolved and she felt a sudden pang of sympathy for the fellow demon. A Paladin, a holy warrior specifically empowered to _hunt_ her kind was now being invited into her very home.

_Great_.

...

Jump City Community Park

Voices filled the night air, blasphemous words weakening the very fabric of reality. Covered in sacrificial blood, twenty depraved cultists were conducting a dark rite, surrounding an arcane pentagram carved into the soft dirt of the park. It pulsated in time with the chanting as the spell neared completion. Sacrifices, the poor dregs of Jump City, were chained at each point of the sigil, blood pumping weakly from opened throats. Their life-force feeding the power of the spell.

Moonlight glinted off the curved blade of the _athame_ as it stabbed downwards into the throat of the last sacrifice, who died gurgling as blood sprayed. The wielder of the dagger and leader of the cultists raised his arms in exultation, letting the flood of blood soak his robes and face. "Tras'kleya'thallgryaa! Iakthe'landra'klaa!" He screamed, the spell culminating in blast of dark power.

The cultist leader stepped away gingerly as the bodies of the six sacrifices were consumed, withered to dust as the last dregs of their souls were sucked into the center of the pentagram. There was a sound like the tearing of wet fabric as a rift in reality formed.

"She comes! She Comes! She Who Thirsts! She comes!" The cultists chanted, kneeling in supplication

Multicolored energies erupted from the portal, a dark silhouette visible in the depths. The energy swirled and mingled, shifting currents smoothing into a patina of dusky skin. The body shifted, taking on beguiling curves and long, black hair. Vestigial horns bulged from her forehead, framing a glowing number '13' as a pointed tail flexed behind her. In seconds the incorporeal shape had formed into a demoness, naked and terrible.

Dark orbs of obsidian regarded the assembled cultists and the demoness's lips curved into a cruel smile. "It is good to know the Church of Blood still holds power in Jump City." The demoness said, the sound of her voice was powerful, vibrant, and utterly wrong, filled with discordant tones like fractured glass.

"We of the true faith live to serve you mistress, all has been prepared in accordance to your wishes." The leader of the cultists responded, raising his head from grass to look upon the demoness with eyes wide with fanatical devotion.

"Yes... I can taste **him**." The demoness responded, excitement tinting her voice as she gazed at the Jump City skyline. She turned back to the cultists, "are the acolytes ready to serve?"

A chorus of shouted affirmations answered her and she smiled again. "Whatever you need my mistress, my flock is ready!" The cultist leader cried loudest of all.

"Whatever I need..." The demoness repeated, stroking a clawed finger across the leader's cheek. She savored the heady rush of fear and desire he emanated.

"Mistress?" The leader croaked out as she leeched his energy. "What are you doing?..."

"Shhh..." Her hands clawed at his face as she drained his life-force in earnest. Tendrils of darkness flowed from the cultist and into the hand of the demoness. The cultist's body began to shrivel, his muscles softening like wax, and his skin growing ashen. His screams turned to gurgles and his eyes burst . The demoness's back arched in ecstasy as she completely devoured the cultist's soul.

Within moments it was over. The leader's lifeless husk dropped to the ground. The rest of the cultists cowered backwards at the fate of their leader, one of them turned to flee but the demoness gestured imperiously and a swarm of roots grew from the ground to drag the cultist back to the others.

"Have we displeased you somehow mistress?" One of the cultists pleaded as more roots grew to constrict the cultists.

"Oh no, you have been nothing but the perfect servants. I'm just taking 'whatever I need'." The demoness replied cruelly. She spread her arms wide and tendrils of darkness were ripped from the cultists, who screamed and begged for mercy. Soon nineteen more husks surrounded the demoness. The mass of tendrils wove together to clothe the demoness with a shroud of darkness.

"Your deaths served me more than your lives ever could." The demoness said coldly. She turned back towards the still open portal. "I'll need some friends..." She mused before weaving a glowing symbol in the air. "Arise my pets! Your mistress calls!" She cried as the portal vomited forth more energy. A chorus of demonic howls rose from the portal as the damned answered her call.

First came the minotaurs, massive bull-headed beastmen wielding over-sized axes in each hand. Then sorcerers, thin, wretched demons with magical staffs and fetishes. Lastly were the predators, hordes of mutated demons that ran, slithered, or scuttled, each a horrifying and unique fusion of talons and limbs. The night was soon alive with the cries of demons.

The twisted hellspawn that had once been the teen mage Traci Thirteen gazed upon the screeching demons with a twisted maternal affection. "My pets, what sweet music they make. Come, we have work to do..."

...

AN: Feel free to R&R with comments and concerns

This story has been my focus in writing for years now and I've finally started the final edition of it, if I don't finish this one, it's done. No pressure... There is a slight crossover with Warhammer 40k. I picked that universe mostly because it will help me examine superheroes and the lines they try to never cross. If you have no clue what the 40k universe is about, I hope it won't throw you off this story, I promise it won't be very important and easily understood.

I guarantee you it will be long, and it will be epic. It will also be dark, grim dark.


	2. Judgement at Jump City Park

An: I don't think this battle scene will cause this story to warrant an M rating but lemme know if you think it does...

Chapter 2: Judgement at Jump City Park

...

Titans Tower, Common Room

"Whoa whoa whoa, a demon-whasit? I'm confused." Beast Boy interjected, wildly waving his arms to get Jon's attention. Jon sighed inwardly and sat back down as he was interrupted for the second time. The Titans were seated on the half-circle couch in the main common room of Titans Tower while Jon tried to explain the nature of the evil they faced.

"A little over a year ago, one of the Conclave Daemonica managed to manifest on our plane of existence..." He began, before noticing the lost expressions on the faces of every Titan except Raven's. "The sixty-six most powerful demons and demonesses, second only to the nine Archfiends of Hell? Ringing any bells?" Jon asked, again receiving blank faces from the Titans, excluding Raven, who looked visibly more relaxed now. She probably had realized Jon was not here for her.

"Batman tended to leave that kind of stuff to Zatanna and the other League magic users." Robin explained.

"I think we all get we're talking about a seriously bad dude," said Cyborg.

"It's a she not a he, and this demoness has more than enough power to turn this entire city into a literal Hell on Earth." Jon snapped. Now he had their undivided attention. "I don't know why or how she managed to summon herself to Jump City, but it's probably a trap for me, that's why I need your help."

"Wait, how do you know this demon girl? I mean why is she trying to trap you?" Beast Boy asked.

Jon's face hardened again at his question. "It's complicated."

"I'm sorry Jon, but we'll need more of an explanation than that. If this demon is so dangerous, we'll need to know more." Robin declared firmly, crossing his arms in a way that said _you better start talking_.

Jon looked away, unable to look Robin or the others in the eye. "She took a human host, a classmate of mine, the same day I received my powers. She killed so many... all because I couldn't stop her. So I've hunted her since."

Starfire reached to place her hand sadly on Jon's shoulder. "You feel that if you destroy this demon you will find the mind of peace."

Jon looked up at her touch. "I'm sorry, but that's private."

"Alright, you've convinced me. The Teen Titans are ready to help." Robin declared, punching a fist into his left hand. The rest of the Titans, even Raven, nodded their approval.

Beast Boy turned to the other Titans "So how we find this demon chick? She got like a facebook or something?..."

Jon gave a short bark of laughter. "Why would a demoness need a facebook page?"

"Good point, shutting up now..." Beast Boy replied, embarrassed.

"I'll handle the hunt kid, don't worry." Jon stood up and grabbed a drawstring backpack he had brought to the tower. "Robin will handle the rest."

...

"Anything yet?" Raven asked for the fifth time, peering over Robin's shoulder to look at the computer terminal he was using. She was overly anxious about the demoness and figured that the sooner the slayer was out of her city the better.

"No." Robin replied curtly. The other Titans were trying to keep out of Robin's and Jon's way as they searched for the demoness, Robin using technology while Jon used more... occult methods. Beast Boy and Cyborg were playing some sort of racing game on their gaming system, the volume turned down low of course. Starfire was off in the kitchen preparing some sort of ungodly welcome meal for Jon.

"Why don't you go help Jon? You probably have the most experience with what he's trying to do." Robin said as he selected another sector of Jump City to scan.

_Great idea Robin, send the half-demon to work with the demon slayer. _Raven wanted retort but instead she sighed. She left Robin and began to drift over to Jon, who was working at one of the tables the Titans ate their meals on.

Jon looked up as Raven walked over, and Raven was once again struck with the impression of approaching a furnace. _He's trying to get the demoness to reveal herself by taunting her with his power,_ Raven realized.

"Come to help?" Jon asked, clearing a section of the table of his artifacts and relics so she could sit down.

"Robin sent me." Raven replied, tense in her seat. _Any minute this Paladin nutjob is going to realize what I am and attack me,_ she thought to herself.

There was an awkward silence before Jon blurted out. "You're a half-demon aren't you?" Raven's face froze in shock, before she summoned her powers, dark energy outlining her body. "No wait! Calm down, calm down." Jon said quickly, holding up his hands in a placating gesture. "I'm not here to attack you."

"You're... not?" Raven asked, sitting back down.

"Of course not, you're one of the good guys." Jon said as if that settled the matter. When he saw Raven's dubious expression, he frowned. "Paladins don't go around banishing every demon. Some just want to enjoy the mortal plane or were summoned as part of a valid pact. Others, like Blue Devil, Kid Devil, Etrigan, and I guess you too, are out to do some good in the world."

"So you're not going to go after me once you're done with this demoness?" Raven asked, relaxing into her chair.

"I promise. Trust me you're not my type... I mean like you are but not the type I'm supposed to hunt." Jon's face was red with embarrassment and he stopped talking.

_Is he actually flirting with me right now..._ Raven gave a short laugh, "Alright I get the picture." She gestured at the pile of artifacts in front of Jon, "so how is all that supposed to help?"

"What this junk?" Jon held up a ceramic figurine of a snarling, white wolf with red eyes. "Well not junk, priceless relics from Dr. Fate's personal collection... Truth is not much, most of them are for combat or warding." He tossed the wolf back into his bag and then winced at the crack of breaking china that followed.

"Smooth."

Jon waved a dismissive hand. "It's the Ghost Wolf of the Starks, it's been broken three times." He hesitated before taking out a small woven braid of black hair. His face grew solemn as he examined the hair for a moment.

Raven noticed the change, "what is that?"

"It's hair, from Traci- I mean the host body. Think you could use it?" Jon asked, handing her the braid.

She looked at it, "I might be able to use my empathy, try and focus in on her."

Jon nodded, "I'll keep on trying to lure her out."

Raven took a deep breath to center herself and closed her eyes, guiding herself to the proper meditative state. "Azarath Metrion Zinthos" She chanted and the room about her suddenly appeared again, this time in a cold, frosty light. Solids became translucent and fuzzy, dimensions warping and twisting, as she opened her mind's eye. The braid was now a wisp of black smoke floating in front of her, swathed in the psychic trace of Traci's life. She teased apart the aura with her mind, trying to find the link to host. She mistakenly brushed the memories of the past and images flashed before her.

_A hospital room filled with the stink of death._

_A school in flames, 'Catonsville High, home of the Bulldogs' said a shattered sign._

_A dark book, bound in soft leather and filled with words written in blood._

_Screaming, a spell gone wrong, reality tearing, horror unleashed._

_"Traci!"_

Raven recoiled from the past, disorientated. The images faded and in a flash of inspiration she saw the link back to the host body. She followed it, her soul self leaving Titans Tower. The city opened up before her and she whispered through lives as she hunted for the demoness, as if she was walking through an endless hallway of windows.

_A drunk heaves into the street outside a dingy bar. His compatriots inside laugh and have another round._

_A single mother wonders how she is going to make it to the next paycheck as her two children squabble in the room over. She contemplates if she can fit a third job into her schedule._

_A young man and a woman make love for the first time. Their hands are clumsy but eager._

_A rat gnaws on a bone. It is happy. It is a rat._

_A man swings on a rope in room 503 of a condemned apartment building. His last thoughts are 'it is better for an old man to die so a young girl may live.'_

_A defense attorney hopes his client actually is innocent before crafting an argument he knows will see the defendant cleared of all charges_

_A construction worker curses as he drags himself to his small bed. He has to be up for work in five hours, not realizing that a heart attack will kill him, quite suddenly, in three... two..._

_A tree grows infinitesimally in Jump City Park._

_A demoness wreathed in shadow leads her sorcerers in a dark ritual in the Park that will destroy Jump City. Once she had been Traci Thirteen now she was simply known as Maxariae-_

Maxariae's eyes snapped upwards to freeze Raven's soul self with a black stare. {Half-breed scum, spying on your betters.} The demoness said, driving the words directly into Raven's mind. The demoness made a dismissive gesture, banishing Raven's soul self back to Titans Tower. {Begone!}

Raven woke in her real body with a shuddering gasp, her nose bleeding once again and the mother of all migraines erupting behind her eyes. "What happened, what did you see?" Jon demanded.

"The park, she's in the park!" Raven choked out. "She's preforming some sort of spell, I-I couldn't tell-"

Alarms, loud and insistent, cut her off. Robin appeared, skidding to a halt next to the table. "We found the demon, she's at the-"

"-Park," Jon finished, face pale. He began to repack his bag with the relics. "We know bird boy, get the Titans ready. We have to move now."

...

"Oh, she's definitely in there." Jon confirmed. The Titans and Jon were on top of an office complex with a commanding view of the southern edge of the Jump City Park. Below, shadows shifted and strange cries and howls could be heard from the demon-infested park.

"So let's get in there and kick some demon butt!" Beast Boy smacked a fist into his palm to punctuate his bravado but his voice cracking halfway through ruin the effect.

"It's not that simple... This isn't some loser like Dr. Light you just smack around and toss in prison for a little vacation." Jon rounded on Beast Boy, who wilted comically to hide behind Cyborg as a green mouse. The demon slayer turned to lecture the other Titans instead. "This is different. Those things out there will _kill_ you in a 's them or us, can you do that? If not, stay out of this. I won't have your deaths on my hands."

"Hey man, we're not a bunch of rookies." Cyborg grumbled.

"Tamareanens have a proud warrior culture-"

"Yeah! We've kicked plenty of ass!" Beast Boy added on, reappearing from behind Cyborg in his human form.

Jon raised a hand to forestall any further retorts. "I didn't mean it like that. I'm sure you guys handle yourselves just fine. Hell, you all could probably kick my ass easily." He complimented. There was a flash of light and and Jon plunged Oath straight-down into roof. He looked over the eagle-wing crossguard of the sword at the Titans, green eyes flashing. "But you wont last a second if you aren't ready to do what is necessary."

The Titans fidgeted nervously as a sudden wind brought the smell of sulfur and blood to them.

"He's right." Raven strode over to stand next to Jon, who was clearly surprised

at her support. "Whatever you think this is, it's much worse."

There was a long silence before Robin stepped forward, arms crossed. "I know you're worried about us, but we can't just standby while our city is threatened!"

"I'm not asking the Titans to stand around, only that you follow my orders no matter what happens." Jon replied defiantly.

There was another tense pause before Robin held out his hand for Jon to shake. "Alright we'll do it, you're in charge."

Jon's face brightened almost immediately as he shook the boy wonder's hand. "Good, good. Don't worry it'll only be for this one time." He motioned the Titans closer and began scratching lines into the roof with Oath. "Alright, here's what we will do, the majority of the demonic power is coming from the Park's central square..."

…

"Titans. Go!"

The stillness of the night air was shattered once again by the Teen Titan's battle cry. Nearby predator demons reacted instantly, heading towards the location of Robin's shout only to be torn apart by explosives, blasts of sonic and dark energy, starbolts, and the horns of a large, green triceratops.

The Titans burst into the park, scattering the demons before them. A creature with whip-like tentacles tipped with tiny, fanged mouths was incinerated by Starfire while Cyborg punched his mechanical fist through the gaping maw of a demon trying to swallow Robin. The Titans continued on, their powers allowing to run right through the scattered demons before them.

"This is easy!" Beast Boy shouted with glee, reverting to human form for a split-second before bringing down another cluster of demons as a T-Rex.

As if in response to Beast Boy's boast, the tide started to shift against the Teen Titans as the progressed further into the park. The demons began to swarm them in greater and greater numbers, responding to the invaders like white blood cells in a human body. "You just had to say something!" Cyborg shouted at Beast Boy, ducking a demon that was trying to drive its bladed fore-limbs into his eyes.

The pressure of the demons began to drive the Titans back to back, each attacker capable of easily maiming or killing the teen superheroes. "Robin, we're surrounded and outnumbered." Raven said calmly, slicing apart a leaping demon with a blade of dark energy.

She was right. For each demon the Titans killed or banished, two more seemed to take its place. Robin pulled a flare gun from his belt and fired it into the air, his split-second distraction almost allowing him to be disemboweled by a howling, dog-headed demon. Raven watched the green flare arc into the air, and saw an answering glimmer of light start to speed towards the ground from high above. "I didn't know Paladins could fly." she whispered to herself.

Raven had a split-second view of Jon hurtling towards the ground feet first, his face set in a determined grimace before the earthshaking impact tossed her, the Titans and the surrounding demons aside like rag dolls.

…

_I am the Hammer..._

Jon was moving even before the last echoes of the impact had faded, his enhanced body absorbing a force that would have burst a regular human body apart like a rotten fruit. He leapt from the bottom of the newly formed crater, divine power filling him with energy he had never known before, to the lip of the crater. He decapitated a nearby demon with one swing of Oath. The gleaming blade was alive with crackling, blue energy. He spared one glance over his shoulder at the Titans, who were picking themselves up after his impact. "Raven with me." He shouted back to them.

Then, sword in hand, he charged into the park. The pack of demons outside the Park's square was unaware of the threat facing them until it was far to late. Disorientated by Jon's thunderous entrance into the battle, they did not notice the dark blur racing at them until he was upon them. Half a dozen demons fell dead, smoking wounds in their bodies, before the pack could even react.

Jon tore into the enemy with a savage roar of fury, Oath carving through the ranks of demons like a scythe. The hellspawn tumbled away from the slayer, the divine blade cutting through unnatural flesh with little resistance. Arms, legs, heads and other unwholesome appendages tumbled into the grass, demonic blood staining the green grass a variety of sickening colors. Jon slipped past the demons' feeble blows and slaughtered them by the score until finally their resolve broke and they fled in every direction. Many were cut apart by the Titans who were struggling to keep up with Jon and avoid being surrounded again.

Covered in steaming demon ichor, Jon stumbled drunkenly to the edge of the open space. In the centre of the park's square shone a dome of green light more than sixty feet across. Dark energy blasts from Raven flashed and rebounded from this magical shield, maintained by the sorcerer demons who sat in a circle around a glowing portal and chanted arcane words towards the sky. Within the circle, the demon Maxariae floated a few feet above the portal. She was no more than the black shadow-shape that Raven had seen in her séance, surrounded by a web of snake-like tendrils of black smoke.

Behind him, the Titans had become surrounded by predator demons again. Very soon they would become overwhelmed. Jon was running out of time.

Brandishing his glowing sword, Jon charged the sorcerers' glowing hemisphere. More dark energy blasts came from Raven, who was pouring every ounce of her power into them. Jon struck the green shield with his nemesis blade, and a web of silver cracks spread across its surface. Immediately, the sorcerers were made aware of him, screeching magic words at the damaged sphere. The cracks faded as he drew back his blade, but he struck the surface again and again, slowly spreading the damage.

Raven saw what he was doing and focused her efforts on the steadily growing cracks. She was almost burnt out from all the energy she was expending but she gritted her teeth and continued. The green glow began to wane as its energies were strained to their breaking point.

Across the square, Jon saw huge figures approaching the ward at a sprint, they were Maxariae's minotaurs. Undaunted, the demon slayer kept up his assault. Within the ward, Maxariae turned to face him. He could feel the equal amounts of amusement and hatred in her cold stare. Then, without warning, the shield collapse, shattering like glass. There was a flash of light, and several of the sorcerers exploded into a messy shower of demon gore. Others were torn asunder by Raven's powers, which were terrifying when she unleashed her full power.

With the shield broken, the minotaurs charged at Jon, axes swinging. The slayer rushed at them with a shout of fury, and his blade sang through the air. One of the huge warriors swung wide, and was cut in half as Jon ran by. Another lunged at him with sweeping cut and had both its hands sliced off.

Jon laughed as he worked with his way through the minotaurs, giving into the battlelust he usually fought so hard to contain. His powers were at their height, strength and stamina pouring into him. Everything seemed crisper, more in focus, and the clumsy attacks of the beastmen seemed to be coming in slow motion.

An axe crashed into his shoulder, but his enhanced fortitude and the bad angle which it landed prevented it from taking off the entire arm, instead it left a jagged wound. Startled, Jon spun and drove his sword through the massive demon's stomach, the energy surrounding the blade boiling its guts. Another axe came hurtling towards his chest but the slayer managed to parry with Oath this time, cutting through the haft of the axe. Grunting from the pain in his shoulder, Jon swung his blade in a neat arc that sliced the head off of the minotaur.

A trio of starbolts from Starfire, moving forward to help Raven and Jon, exploded amongst the last three minotaurs. The bull-headed demons were stunned and shaken from the blasts and Jon cut them down.

Then a strange buzzing sound filled the air, like a swarm of angry bees, and Maxariae hit him with a bolt of pure darkness.

It passed through his body like it was not even there, and he felt his organs seemingly melt at its touch. A lance of pure pain speared through Jon's chest, and he spat sizzling blood onto the ground. The object of his year-long quest loomed above him thirty feet away, wreathed in tendrils of darkness. Wave of cruelty and glee emanated from her physically as she surveyed the demon slayer.

"How sad it is, for you to sacrifice so much, only to fail now." Maxariae crooned. Starbolts and a park bench lifted with Raven's telekinesis lashed at her, but the demoness paid little heed to them. "I thought you were stronger than this."

Suddenly she leapt at him, crossing the space between them in a second. The slim hand of Traci Thirteen crashed into Jon and flung him across the square like a doll. He crashed into a mighty oak tree twenty feet away, demolishing the tree before continuing on another couple of yards.

"You know, you could have left me alone. That's what a wise man would have done. But you seem so DEAD-set on dying, who am I to deny you?" Maxariae said.

She swooped down on him again. This time Jon brought Oath up in a slice that cut through the demoness's belly. Maxariae staggered with a horrible scream before recovering instantly. Her taloned hand grabbed him by the throat and flung him into the air again. This time he smashed into the square's fountain. Brick and stone shattered his impact, and he landed with a splash into the foot of water.

The possessed body of Traci, his friend, glided after him. Raven lashed out at her smoky form with her powers again and again, slowing her flight. Still the demon pressed on, an evil smile upon her face. "I like your new friend lover boy. I didn't realize you were into the self-pitying goth girls with daddy issues. Bet you I know something about her that you don't." Maxariae taunted in a sickening voice, before she swept down and slapped the slayer's chest lightly as he rose from the water.

His ribs cracked like eggshells and Jon roared in agony before burying Oath into her chest. The silver blade burst from the demoness's back, dragging out a scream of rage. Multi-colored demon blood smoked at the tip of the blade. Maxariae drew back her hand to hit him again before a desperate starbolt from Starfire blasted the two combatants apart.

Jon landed badly on his wounded shoulder, biting back a scream of agony. Maxariae landed in a pile a couple of yards away. Her form had a grey look to it now, and the tendrils of darkness and had once wreathed were fading away. With a foul curse, she summoned them back to her.

Then Raven flew above her and dropped a half a dozen propane tanks, leftover from the last community barbecue, on top of Maxariae. Raven contained the explosion with her powers, bathing the demoness with fire. Jon could see her dark form twisting inside of it. The demon screamed and demonic energy pulsed from her body. Raven retreated, but Maxariae's ruined face followed her. She pointed a melted finger and demonic screeches filled the air. The shadow tendrils leapt from her body, seeking out the cloaked form of Raven.

Summoning his rage, Jon clambered to his feet and charged across the remnants of the square. Maxariae saw him coming and sent another bolt of pure darkness at him. He staggered, feeling his guts turn to mush, but his hate sustained him. Jon raised Oath's glowing blade and chopped it deep into Maxariae's chest.

She howled and twisted around the sword, her tainted body hissing and burning under the weapon's divine touch. Still she sent the tendrils after Raven, who tried to evade them desperately. "You can't kill me fool!" She screamed. "The Archfiends themselves fill me with their power."

Jon spat a mouthful of blood into Traci's former face. "And they don't approve of failure," he said through gritted teeth, twisting the sword in the demoness's body.

Maxariae screamed again, and the smoke tendrils released Raven unharmed. Her body turned grey once again. Incoherent gibbering came the demoness as she tried to summon more power, but the patience of the Archfiends and the power of her portal were at an end.

Shifting ribbons of power leapt from the nearby portal, stabbing like arrows into Maxariae's body and beginning to drag her back towards the portal. Jon hurled himself clear. He watched as the demoness's body slowly began to dissolve into the portal.

Maxariae drew in a shuddering breath as the lower half of her host body was dissolved. "She... loved you!" She hissed, the words like a curse.

"I know..." Jon whispered, watching as the demoness gave him one more glare of hatred before dissolving into the swirling portal. The portal began to contract slowly into nothingness as Raven landed next to his prone form.

"Is it over?" Raven asked as she helped Jon to his feet. The demon slayer could barely stand, his wounded shoulder was bleeding heavily and his chest and stomach were an unholy mess. In front of them, the portal began to contract more and more in this reality.

Jon did not answer, he was leaning heavily on Oath, watching Maxariae's portal. It had contracted into a single ball of light that began to pulse in brightness rhythmically.

_I like your new friend lover boy. I didn't realize you were into the self-pitying goth girls with daddy issues. Bet you I know something about her that you don't._

"Jon? You ok?" Raven asked, unsure on how to help. The nature of his power shielded him from her empathy, a side-effect generated by the slayer while he fought the demonic. She was not very good at normal interaction without it. The other Titans were running forward to help, their foes melting away as the power source sustaining them dispersed.

Without warning, Jon shoved Raven to the ground and leapt forward, putting himself between her and the glowing ball of light. There was a bright flash and the remnants of the portal exploded, flinging Jon aside as he took the brunt of the explosion. The last thing he saw was a tree coming too close for comfort before a sickening thud. Darkness swallowed him.

_She loved you!_

_I know..._

…


	3. New Beginnings

AN: Sorry for such a short chapter, next will be back up to norm. Just kinda had to get this one out of the way.

Chapter 3: New Beginnings

Jon returned to the land of the living suddenly and quite painfully. He jolted forward, sitting up and immediately regretting it. His ribs and stomach burned with pain, causing him to sink back into his bed with a grunt, clutching at his body. _Let's not do that again..._ Jon thought with a grimace before relaxing into the soft bed and looking around, noticing that he was in Titan Tower's infirmary. He remembered it from his tour, the line of beds, the small operating theatre partitioned off with a heavy curtain, large, hi-tech medical machines, and a fully robotic surgeon that hung ominously from the ceiling in the operating theatre.

The machine next to him, hooked up to him with a variety of needles and sensors that Jon had just started to notice, began to beep frantically as it detected his mind's shift from REM sleep to full awareness.

Frowning with annoyance and still a little groggy from his painful awakening, Jon began to strip the monitor electrodes and, carefully, the IV needles.

The door to the infirmary hissed open and Robin walked in. The boy wonder stopped short when he saw that Jon was awake. "Well, you're not supposed to be up yet." Robin said in a surprised tone, taking Jon's chart from the foot of his bed and examining it.

"I'm a quick healer. Perks of the job I guess." The demon slayer replied solemnly, continuing to remove the various medical machines attached to his body.

"That thing-, demon, shattered your ribs and dealt severe trauma to your internal organs. It's a miracle you're still alive Jon." Robin declared, putting the chart back into its holder.

Jon shrugged, "He protects, I serve. Good enough deal in my book. Rest of the Titans make it?"

"Yes, everyone's fine. They've been waiting for you to wake up all night. You seemed to have made a good impression." Robin noted. "Told you so by the way."

Jon grinned ruefully, "that you did. Though that's something I'm happy to be wrong about."

The normally grim Robin managed a laugh. "Me too, trust me. So a year later and you're finally done with your quest. What will you do now?"

Jon clambered off the infirmary bed, relaying mostly on his power to fly to get up. He limped past Robin to the large glass window at the far end of the room. Outside, the faintest rays of light were creeping over the horizon. Dawn was almost here.

Jon stared out of the window, watching the waves break upon the small beach at the base of the tower. He wanted to feel relief, or maybe happiness that he had finally finished his quest. Instead he just felt... emptiness. For the past year, his only purpose in life had been destroying Maxariae. Sure there had been distractions, particularly superhero 'work' alongside the likes of Zatanna, Dr. Fate, Kid Flash, and even Batman and Robin, but he had always had the quest driving him forward. Now... he had nothing.

"You know you have a bad habit of ignoring people and staring off into the distance." Robin commented dryly as he walked over to stand next to Jon.

"Sorry, just a lot on my mind... To be honest Robin, I never really thought about what I'd do after." Jon replied. "Probably will end up wandering the country or something."

"You could join the Titans."

Jon looked sharply around to stare at the slightly shorter Robin. "Wait, what? Seriously? I never really thought that someone like me could be a superhero. I mean sure I've got power, but it's tailored to fighting demons."

"Starfire could probably put her fist through a man's chest but it doesn't mean she does it every time she fights Dr. Light." Robin argued. "You would have to restrict on who you use the sword against of course, I'm thinking just robots or monsters, but other than that it's just a matter of self-control which I'm sure you will be fine with. The Titans could always use another heavy hitter."

"And if there's anything I can do, it's heavy hitting." Jon agreed, mulling Robin's offer over in his head. He had never really considered joining the Titans before now.

"There is another reason I want you on the team." Robin added.

"Ah! The catch."

Robin shook his head exasperatedly. "It's not a catch. The fight in the park made me realize that there are things out there none of us are used too, well except maybe Raven. I want to be prepared for them."

"Taking after Batman already I see." Jon said with a smirk. "How'd Zee's joke go again? Poison Ivy uses her mind control spores on Superman and sends him after Batman, who doesn't have any kryptonite. Who wins?"

"Superman?..." Robin asked, confused.

"Wrong, Batman. Batman ALWAYS has kryptonite" Jon finished. The two teen heroes shared a laugh at the lame joke.

"So will you join the team?" Robin asked after a moment's silence.

Jon frowned at him for a moment before breaking into a wide grin, "join the Titans? Of course I will. This is great!" He clapped Robin on the back happily, accidentally sending the other hero crashing into the glass. "Ah crap, sorry about that."

Robin peeled himself off the glass. "Like I said, have to work on the control."

"Yeah I guess you're right... Wait, did you mention this to the other Titans?... I'm not sure they'll just take a newcomer just like that. I mean we fought together once." Jon said doubtfully.

"I wouldn't worry about that. When I left the lounge, they were talking pretty positively about you. Even Raven was going on about how we should recruit you." Robin said, trying to be casual. Batman had trained him well in the art of reading people.

"Oh, well I uh, that's good to know." Jon replied, "and I know what you're trying to do there 'Bats'. Trust me though, not the time."

"I don't know what you're talking," Robin said with a smirk. He began to walk from the infirmary. "Come on, let's go meet your new teammates."

…

The warm rays of the new dawn peeked out of the thinning clouds, as if eager to banish the darkness of the previous night. Across the water, Jump City was waking up to a brand new day, it's inhabitants unaware of how close to death they had been. Instead the citizens moved about their lives normally, perhaps even happier than usual, some instinct driving them to live this new day to the fullest.

_There has got to be a lesson learned from that,_ Jon thought to himself. _That no matter what happens, there will always be a new dawn. Or maybe, ignorance is bliss_.

He looked down at the old, creased photograph in his hand with, his stomach lurching painfully from affection to regret. A harsh screech interrupted Jon as Beast Boy in the form of a green bald eagle swooped down at him.

"There you are! Why were you hiding dude? We're going into the city for your tour remember!" Beast Boy complained.

Jon smiled weakly, "sorry just wanted to check out the view. I'll meet you guys down there in a minute." The demon slayer gave the photograph in his hand one last look before letting go of it and flying after Beast Boy.

...

The photograph fluttered in the morning breeze, threatening to drift off the edge of the roof before a nimbus of black energy surrounded it and pulled it back. Raven appeared, emerging from the shadows where she had been hiding since Jon had unknowingly interrupted her meditations. She grabbed the photograph out of the air with a puzzled expression on her face and uncreased it.

It was a picture of a group of teenagers, all wearing 'Catonsville High Bulldogs' jerseys. Two guys with their arms crossed grinned proudly at the camera. One was stocky with a blond bowl cut while the other was slimmer with shaggy black hair and the look of an artist. Next to them were...

_No it couldn't be..._

Next to them were two other teenagers, a guy and a girl. Raven noticed Jon immediately and her eyes widened as she recognized the girl that he was hugging from behind. The very attractive girl with long black hair, dark olive skin and the number 13 tattooed on her forehead. The girl whose neck Jon was kissing lovingly.

The last words of the demon echoed in Raven's mind. _She loved you..._

Raven looked down at the laughing face of Traci Thirteen, realization flooding her in a cold wave. The demon Maxariae had taken more than a classmate of Jon... the demon had taken his girlfriend.

…

An: This may seem like it's a throwaway chapter but it is actually quite important despite how small it is. Like I said next one will be up to normal amounts. As always feel free to leave questions, comments and concerns


	4. Settling in

An: Exposition chapter.

Chapter 4: Settling in

Another day, another dawn. Sunlight glimmered through the ceiling-high windows of Titans Tower, bathing Raven in a warm glow as she walked back from her customary morning meditation on the roof. The darkly beautiful half-demon usually preferred to just phase back down to the common room with her powers, but today something compelled her to take the scenic route. The early morning was her favorite time of day, the peace and quiet a welcome respite from her boisterous teammates. Not to say she did not enjoy living with her friends, but a soul like hers needed a break for 'alone time' ever so often.

It was a surprise to her then, that when the doors to the common room hissed open, she found Jon sitting at the kitchen island-counter. The paladin, one of the ancient demon slayer order, looked up from his almost finished plate of eggs, bacon, and toast.

"Good morning." He said politely, folding the newspaper he had been reading and tossing it onto the large stack next to him.

"I, uh, good morning to you." Raven replied, nonplussed. _Of course, the next day after the new guy moves in and I'm stuck alone with him,_Raven thought. "You're up early," she continued, forcing herself to socialize but only succeeding in coming off as awkward. She walked down to the kitchen area and began to prepare her morning herbal tea.

"Don't really sleep much to be honest, plus the couch sucks," Jon answered with a laugh. "You're up pretty early yourself."

"I get up before dawn everyday to meditate." Raven replied, putting a kettle on to boil. She noticed that the pan and skillet Jon had cooked with were already cleaned and back in their proper place. "To help control my powers."

"Ah." There was a pause where it seemed Jon wanted to ask what kind of powers required her to meditate every day to control, but he caught himself. "I never really could meditate much, Zee and Fate were always trying me to teach me."

"You mean Zatanna and Dr. Fate? How did a paladin end up knowing two of the most powerful magic-users on the planet? I thought your kind hated magic." Raven asked, her rich purple eyes regarding the demon slayer curiously.

Jon munched on a bite of bacon before replying. "As far as I know we don't hate magic. Zee said there were great sorcerers in the Order as well. 'Any and all means to combat _maleificarum_' and all that. Fate even taught me a few tricks for when things get dicey."

Raven's eyes widened in surprise, "you know magic?"

"Sure, basic sensitivity, a couple warding spells, a little healing, messengers, rites of banishment." Jon replied, ticking them off on his fingers. "Backup stuff, I'm not going to be throwing fireballs or what you do. When you're up against demons and the supernatural you sometimes need more than muscle and a sword, though the sword helps." Jon finished with a laugh.

"Well, I owe you an apology then." Raven turned to the kettle as it began to whistle shrilly. She levitated a tea pot and tea leaves over and began to prepare her herbal tea. "That night you first arrived, I thought you were one of those crazy 'knight templar' types..." Raven continued, pouring the finished tea into a porcelain cup. She took a seat opposite of Jon at the island-counter.

"...That was going to go crazy and attack you when he found out you were a sorceress and a half-demon?" Jon finished for her. He pushed his now empty plate off to the side

"Yes, that sounds about right." Raven answered, taking a deep breath of the fragrant aroma wafting from the tea before taking a sip.

"Well, I'm not." Jon declared firmly, frowning slightly at Raven as if he was offended she thought he would be so fanatical. "Only after the forces of darkness and I'm not sure you fit the bill... Being a superhero and all."

Raven's face flushed apologetically. "I'm sorry."

Jon grinned at her happily, "it's fine, don't worry about it! Here." He held out his hand to Raven. "We weren't really properly introduced were we? Jon Asienthorn, of Catonsville, New York. I know, Asienthorn is ridiculous sounding."

Raven hesitated for a moment before reaching out with her slim, grey hand and shaking Jon's slightly tan, calloused hand. She felt a flash of warmth, small compared to the inferno Jon had radiated the night he had arrived but still burning with power. She managed the slightest of smiles, "Raven, just Raven. From Azarath."

A memory suddenly surfaced in Raven's mind, dragged out by the sight of Jon's smiling face. A picture of smiling teenagers, of a younger Jon and the girl he was hugging lovingly, the girl with the tattoo of the number 13.

"Listen, Jon." Raven said when the handshake had ended. For a moment she found herself missing the warmth his touch had emanated.

"Yeah?"

"When you were on the roof yesterday morning... You left something." Raven produced the photo she had found on the roof from a hidden pocket in her cloak.

She moved to hand him the photo when there was brief buzzing sound in the air, followed by a _fwoosh_ and the photo disappeared from Raven's grip, reappearing all the way across the common room.

Raven blinked in surprise, both Jon and her staring at her now empty hand. "What the-"

There was another combination of _fwoosh_ and buzzing noise and the plate that had once held Jon's breakfast disappeared as well. Both of the heroes leapt up from the countertop, Raven's hands became swathed in dark energy while Oath appeared with a flash in Jon's own.

"Jon, what is going on?" Raven asked in a wary voice, her eyes darting back and forth in an attempt to see the unknown intruder.

"I think I know what's going on." Jon mumbled, green eyes narrowing in recognition.

Raven reached out with her mind and detected the intruder, but only slightly. It was moving far faster than she could focus on, both physically and mentally. "I can't focus on it, what is it?"

Oath disappeared with another flash as Jon grinned. "Quick, toss me a banana."

"What? Why!"

"Just trust me Raven." Jon replied, his eyes darting back forth as well. Raven got the feeling that he was able to see more of the invisible intruder than her.

Deciding it was better to just listen to the paladin, Raven grabbed a banana, covered in brown spots, from the nearly empty fruit bowl and tossed it to Jon.

Jon caught it without looking and peeled the banana quickly. The paladin tossed the extremely bruised fruit into the kitchen's overflowing garbage can but kept the peel. There was another _fwoosh_-_hum_ and the front of Jon's white sleeping shirt was pulled up and over his head.

"Cheeky bastard!" Jon yelled, struggling to fix his shirt.

"Jon, what the hell is going on?" Raven yelled, she had seen a slight flash of yellow and red when Jon's shirt had been pulled over his head. Whatever was in the room was always at her peripheral vision, flitting out of sight before she could focus on it.

So damn fast.

"Don't worry Raven, I know who this is." Jon replied calmly. He had a look on his face like a wolf, eyes eager with a predatory grin. "You're slower than normal West. What, you get Chipotle before coming here?"

"West? Who are you talking too?" Raven demanded, utterly dumbfounded. An apple disappeared from the meagre fruit bowl and suddenly reappeared hurtling at Jon's head. Raven caught it with her powers, dark energy halting it and placing it neatly on the countertop.

Jon whirled around and snatched the apple from the countertop and then hurled it it, seemingly at random at a spot across the common room. At the same time, he tossed the banana peel on the ground a yard away.

Three things happened in a quick succession. The solid thud as the apple struck the far wall. A sudden _splat_ as the banana peel was annihilated by a something moving incredibly fast and a yellow-red blur snapped into sight, tumbling end over end before crashing into the closed doors of the common room.

Raven ran over to the crumpled mass at the door, levitating a table over to attack the intruder. "How dare you break into our tower. What are you doing here!"

"Whoa, down girl." Jon said in a calming matter. The paladin caught the half-demon's arm before she could hit the intruder with the table. Raven felt the calming warmth flow from him to her and she relented, placing the table back where she had taken it from.

Raven blushed outwardly while her mind raced inwardly. _Why does he have such an effect on me_, she had only ever known cold, never allowing herself any warmth. The strict control of her emotions had left her nothing but cold emptiness, pushing all away. Jon gave off a fire that was frightening but exhilarating, full of potential and strength. It was appealing... especially to someone that prevented herself from feeling anything.

Raven snapped out of her reverie and watched as Jon helped the crumpled mass to his feet. The intruder was revealed to be a boy about Jon's age. Slim compared to Jon's more muscular frame but fit, the intruder had the long arms and legs of a runner and was good-looking in a laid back sort of way. He had bright red hair which meshed well with his bright, almost garish, yellow and red costume which was emblazoned with a red lightning bolt and two other lightning bolts covered his ears.

"A banana peel, I can't believe you got me with a banana peel..." The costumed intruder groaned as he picked himself up.

"Maybe if you looked where you were going instead of acting like an ass." Jon replied with a smirk. He patted the intruder on the back in what was probably intended as a friendly gesture but only succeeded in staggering the intruder. "Crap, sorry Wally."

The intruder, clearly named Wally, straightened back up, clutching at his back melodramatically. "Hey, watch it! I forgot how painful your greetings were." He said while Jon laughed. Wally looked up and noticed Raven standing nearby, looking confused and annoyed. "Well, hello there."

He ran up to her, seemingly reappearing right in front of the half-demon, who jumped slightly and frowned at him. "Kid-Flash, fastest boy alive. What's a gorgeous thing like you hanging out with a clumsy jerk like him?"

Raven regarded the speedster disdainfully with one eyebrow raised. "I live here," she replied coldly.

"You do? I can see why Jon likes it here already." Kid Flash said with a smirk back at Jon, who colored slightly.

Jon lurched forward, as if he was going to tackle Kid Flash but the speedster sprinted away to the refrigerator. "Food! I'm starving, what'cha got?" He asked excitedly, rummaging through the fridge at super-speed.

"I forgot how much of a glutton you are." Jon noted, shaking his head and laughing. He followed Kid-Flash back to the kitchen area with a visibly annoyed Raven following stiffly.

…

"So what brings you to Jump City?" Jon asked. Kid-Flash was devouring leftover pizza at a slightly sickening rate while Raven sat a noticeably far distance away from the other two superheroes, quiet and reserved.

"To see how you were doing of course. You haven't talked to anyone in a month, since that fight in Central City. Then all of a sudden you show up here in Jump City joining the Teen Titans. I for one, was hurt that you couldn't even keep touch with your friends." Kid-Flash said in a petulant tone.

"Sorry, this last month has been brutal. I lost touch with everyone..." Jon replied, his voice fading slightly as he remembered the final days of the hunt. They felt like another life time ago, yet Maxariae had only been banished for less than two days.

Jon's musing was interrupted by a half eaten pizza slice hitting him right in the face. He sputtered incoherently, brushing crumbs, cheese and cold sauce out of his eyes. "What was that for!"

"I'm sorry but it's annoying whenever you go on those long flashback-day dreams." Kid Flash complained, finishing another slice of pizza by the time Jon had cleaned his face.

"Fair enough." Jon conceded.

"I don't get it. How did you two meet each other?" Both Jon and Kid-Flash looked around sharply. It was the first time Raven had said anything since Kid-Flash's tumultuous arrival.

"Well miss, I first encountered this sword-swinging psychopath in Central City about eleven months ago. He was massacring a local cult-" Kid Flash began.

"PURGING a Church of Blood sect. I didn't kill anybody! Only demonhosts, and the host's soul is long gone at that point." Jon interrupted, looking over at Raven nervously.

"Fine, 'purging'. Whatever, he was making a mess." Kid-Flash said. "So the Flash, who's my-"

"He's the Flash's sidekick." Jon added with a grin.

"-PARTNER. Shutup Jon. My partner and I thought he was was a nut-job and we scuffled a bit before the lovely Zatanna and Dr. Fate showed up and straightened things up." Kid-Flash finished.

"And the rest they say is history." Jon said sagely before turning to Raven. "Speaking of which, Zee is coming by later. That's ok right?"

"I don't see how that could be a problem." Raven replied dryly. Truthfully, she was finding Kid-Flash to be too flirty for her taste and was annoyed that her big photographic-related reveal was interrupted. It would be interesting to meet Zatanna however.

A loud chiming noise began to emit suddenly from Kid-Flash's belt causing him to sigh audibly. The speedster unclipped a small lightning bolt-shaped communicator. "Hello?"

There was a squeal of static as whoever was contacting, it sounded like a middle-aged woman, Kid-Flash began to scream at him. Both Jon and Raven winced, hearing small bits and pieces of the tirade.

"Aunt Iris, I'm just visiting my friend- No, I haven't done the homework..." Kid-Flash was complaining to the communicator. "But it'll take like five seconds for me to do I'm just in California I'll be home lunch... No, I forgot that I was supposed to be watching the baby later... Alright fine! I'm sorry!" Kid-Flash said heatedly into the communicator, rubbing his forehead in an unconscious sign of frustration.

"Auntie Iris pissy?" Jon asked with a laugh.

"Like a democrat in Texas, and twice as unreasonable." Kid-Flash said with another sigh. "I better be off then, before she grounds me till the next century." He stood and bowed extravagantly to Raven with a cocky smile. "It was a pleasure meeting, my dear. We should get lunch sometime, perhaps a candlelit dinner?"

"I'll keep the offer in mind." Raven said dryly, her tone clearly stating she was planning no such thing.

Kid-Flash grimaced slightly at the rejection before he turned to Jon, who was trying to hold in his laughter. "As for you, keep in touch you big oaf." He said offering Jon his hand, who shook it before thumping him on a back a few times in a friendly manner.

"Don't worry Wally, I will. I'm done with wandering." Jon replied.

"This mean you're not going to be a sullen mass of depression and rage as usual?" Kid-Flash asked with an eyebrow raised.

Jon laughed. "Yes, Wally. I like it here. Get going before Iris goes through your text messages."

Kid-Flash's eyes widened in mock-fear, "I'm off!" He sprinted away, his form blurring and reappearing at the sliding door to the common room as he waited for it to open. The door slid open to reveal the rest of the Teen Titans; Robin, Cyborg, Beast Boy and Starfire.

"Wally?" Robin sputtered, shocked at the sight of the scarlet speedster. "What the-"

"Can't chat! Iris pissed!" Kid-Flash replied rapidly. He squeezed past the confused Cyborg and disappeared, sprinting away at extreme speeds.

"Ok... That was weird." Beast Boy said slowly. "Who wants tofu?"

…

"So this is the daily routine?" Jon asked casually. Nearly two hours had passed since Kid-Flash's speedy exit. The Titans were situated around the common room. Surprising to the other Titans, Jon sat off to the side next to Raven, talking occasionally while she read one of her many books. Starfire was trying to teach Robin some sort of Tamaranean game that seemed to involve a lot of loud crashes and groans from Robin. Beast Boy and Cyborg were crowded around the enormous widescreen screen that served as the television set. Judging by the amount of shouts of fury from Beast Boy and of joy from Cyborg, Cyborg was clearly dominating the green shapeshifter.

"Just about." Raven replied, looking up from her book to view the others. "That's normally what they do."

"They, but not you?" Jon asked casually.

"I- well," Raven was taken aback by the pointed question. "I like to be left alone, Beast Boy and the others can be annoying sometimes, but I deal with it. I just like thing to be quiet so I can read, or meditate." Inwardly, she was surprised she was giving so much information about herself away to the paladin.

"Ah, an introvert. Trust me, I know what it's like to want some quiet." Jon nodded sagely. "Wait, am I annoying you?"

Raven thought for a moment. Surprisingly, Jon was not actually annoying her. Which was even stranger due to the fact he was a paladin and she a half-demon. "No, you're fine."

"Good. What are you reading anyhow?" Jon inquired, leaning forward to sneak a peek at the cover of the book. Raven reflexively jerked the book to the side. Jon leaned back and put his hands up in a sign of surrender, "alright sorry, that was rude of me."

Raven sighed, "no it's ok. Just don't do things like that, it's annoying."

"Say no more, I understand."

"The book is _Meditations on Other Spheres,_ by Kyril Sinnderman. Though I don't think you would know it." Raven said, regaining her cool aloofness.

"You'd be surprised Raven. I've read my share of Sinnderman, _Meditations_ included." Jon replied with a smirk.

Raven gaped at him, "where did you read Sinnderman? His works are proscribed by well- everyone."

"Dr. Fate's library. He has the lunatic's complete works." Jon declared proudly, "knowledge is power, so I learned everything I could after I became, well you know, a paladin."

"I see," Raven said, quietly impressed. "What else have you read?"

"Well, my favorite authors are Stephen King and Dan Abnett." When he saw Raven's confused expression, he grinned. "But you probably meant other books on the arcane. I've read Dwembski, Riordan the Strange, Bruttenholm, Pulci, and a couple others. Not to mention the Oghma Infinitum, the Mysterium Xeres, some of the Galien Scrolls and the Malieficadex... That goddamn thing gave me nightmares for a month." Jon finished with a shudder.

"You've read the Oghma Infinitum and the Galien Scrolls?" Raven exclaimed. "And the Malieficadex?" She was astonished to hear that a Paladin, warriors that her mother had always made out to seem as ignorant brutes, had such extensive knowledge of the arcane. "Some take a lifetime to read those the tomes! Most go mad."

"Not to sound like an ass but I haven't been most people for over a year now, and reading has always been my strong point." Jon replied with shrug, leaning back into the couch that ran the length of the left hand side of the common room. "Dr. Fate was a pretty cool guy, him and Zee helped me out in the beginning."

There was a crack of displaced air and a flash of golden light behind Jon and Raven. "If by 'a pretty cool guy', you mean he was perfectly alright letting some teenager stay in his trans-dimensional home for months on end then yes, I guess you are right about the good doctor," came a voice from behind the two Titans.

"Again with the sudden visitors!" Raven shouted, leaping up from the couch. Jon laughed and turned to regard the newcomers. One was a statuesque woman, with long, jet-black hair and bright, blue eyes. She was dressed in a magician's tuxedo jacket and leotard corset, with fishnet tights and top hat, as if she had just come from a performance.

The other newcomer was older and male, dressed in a body-glove of the deepest blue, with a golden belt, gloves and cape. The helm was the most reJonable part of his costume, golden and all-enclosing. It was the Helm of Nabu and within it dwelled the consciousness of one of the most powerful magical entities of this reality. It shone like a beacon to the magically-attuned Raven and Jon.

"Greetings friends," the man said, raising his hand in greeting as the Titans gathered around the new comers. "Apologies for the sudden intrusion, I am Doctor Fate."

"And I," the magician said, twirling a stereotypical magic wand over her head, "am Zatanna."

"Do you really bring that thing everywhere?" Jon asked sarcastically, causing Zatanna to drop the wand with a muttered curse.

"Ass." Zatanna frowned at the smirking paladin before her angry facade broke down and she rushed forward and gripped Jon in a tight embrace. "There you are, you jerk. I've been worried to death for an entire month."

"Trust me, Wally has already yelled at me for that." Jon mumbled back to his friend, pleased beyond measured that he was reunited with Zatanna.

"We will only require a moment of your valuable time Titans," Dr. Fate said smoothly to the other Titans, before looking over the common room. The kitchen, messy from Beast Boy and Starfire's attempt at breakfast, and the paused video game displayed on the enormous flatscreen caused Dr. Fate to hesitate slightly. The sorcerer was clearly wondering how relevant the term 'valuable' was in regards to the Teen Titan's time. "I must speak with Robin about your new teammate, while Zatanna is going to help him move in. Robin if I could speak to you in private?"

And with that Dr. Fate strode from the common room, an annoyed Robin following close behind.

The other Titans and Zatanna stood awkwardly for a moment. "Well, it's been nice meeting you all but we should go unpack the jerk here, time is mana!" Zatanna declared before striding forth from the common room with a apologetic looking Jon close behind with Raven

"Well that was boring." Beast Boy complained, "you two want to play Mega Monkeys 3.7?"

"You mean whoop your butt in it?"

"Please, what is a monkey? Some sort of alien robot Beast Boy is fond of?"

…

"So she was in Jump City the whole time?" Zatanna asked. She and Jon were walking with Raven to Jon's new room in the upper levels of Titans Tower.

Jon shrugged, "as far as I can tell she was summoned here that night. I found Church of Blood robes and scrolls at the park when I went back to cleanse the place, well that and twenty-odd bodies." He fished in his pockets for a moment before withdrawing a newspaper clipping from the day's paper. "Missing; Sean Dvorak, Alicia Teryn, Frederick Hahn, Katherine Hughes, etcetera etcetera. I'm guessing they're the cultists."

"Stupid Blood bastards, when will they learn they're just playing with fire." Zatanna sighed.

"Agreed, I'll start investigating this week, knocking on doors, grilling relatives, that whole deal. Have to see if the cancer died that night." Jon continued bitterly.

Ahead of him, Raven cut in suddenly. "Cancer?" She asked, without turning around. "What is this Church of Blood?"

"It's the largest demonic cult in the world. They have cells on every continent." Zatanna answered.

"Yep, even Antarctica." Jon chimed in. "The Mountains of Madness are they're headquarters. Imagine a mountain range bigger than the Himalayas, riddled with caves, tunnels, and ruins for hundreds of miles. It's no wonder no one can hunt them down there."

"Who do they worship?"

"Abaddon, Asmodel, Belial, Neron, Lilith, Trigon." Zatanna said, ticking the names of the greatest evils in existence off casually as if they were nothing but sports teams. "Whoever they think will grant their desires."

Raven nodded along as Zatanna listed the names, flinching towards the end. Zatanna missed the small movement, but Jon caught it. He filed away the information away for later.

"We're here." Raven said. She keyed open the door, and stood aside to let Zatanna and Jon walk in.

"Well, it's spacious but could it get anymore empty?" Zatanna complained. "Nice view though." The extra room the Titans had granted Jon stretched back rather far, ending in a window-wall that offered a breathtaking view of the bay and Jump City Harbor. The room was only furnished with a simple wooden desk and chair, a twin-sized bed, a dresser, sliding-door closet and a computer terminal linked to the main computer of Titans Tower.

"I'm happy with it," Jon said, using a power-assisted leap to land onto the bed. "Better than old churches or motels."

"Whatever, lets get to work." Zatanna took a small, drawstring bag from her waist and tossed it onto the desk with a resounding crash. Raven, who had seated herself at the desk, leapt up in surprise from the anomalous sound. Zatanna laughed at her shocked face, "surprise, it's very capacious."

"Is it enchanted?' Raven asked, staring at the bag with curiosity but refraining from touching it.

"Yup, did it myself. I got the idea from a book," Zatanna explained, "one of those ridiculous children books about what regular people think what magic is like." She began to root through the bag. Raven noticed that her arm reached far further into the bag than what should have been physically possible. With a grunt of effort, Zatanna began to withdraw a book from the depths of the bag. First a corner, than the spine, eventually the entire book had been taken from the bag, expanding into its proper size and shape. It was a leather-bound tome much larger than the bag that had contained it, and judging by the way the bag rattled, it was still full to the brim.

"Damn that was hard, I may have miscalculated..." Zatanna said with a frown, regarding the bag thoughtfully. She snatched up her wand from the desk and gave it a little twirl.

"Oh shit... Raven duck!" Jon shouted, diving for cover.

"Gnihtyreve tou emoc!" Zatanna chanted.

The small bag rose up into the air unassisted and began to vomit a mass of items seemingly from nowhere into the room. Raven ducked as an entire bookcase of polished white-oak squeezed out of the bag, followed by a multitude of books and codices that flew through the air like bullets. She looked up only to scrabble on all floors to the wall as a tall lamp slammed down inches from her feet.

Other items soared through the air from the bag. A jet-black chest, banded with silver chains and locks, landed with a solid _thunk_ at the foot of Jon's bed. A green beanbag chair slipped snugly into the far corner next to the window, while night table settled next to the bed. Moments later, a digital clock landed onto the night table.

As abruptly as the flood of belongings had begun, it ended. A final few books shot out to tuck themselves into the bookcase before the miraculous bag landed limply onto the floor.

Zatanna picked it up and slipped it into her tuxedo jacket's pocket. "Well, that was certainly fun," she said with a wide grin." She looked around confused for a moment, "where's Jon?"

"Hiding." Came the muffled reply from under the bed.

"What in Mordred's ass are you doing there." Zatanna asked, bending over to look under the bed.

"Trying not to get killed by a maniac like you." Jon retorted as he dragged himself out from under the bed, extracting a tiny laugh from Raven. "Still, not a bad job." Jon complimented as he surveyed his new room. He moved the floor lamp from where Raven was getting to her feet and over to the bean bag chair. "Perfect."

Raven walked over to the large chest. "What is this for?" Every lock on the chest was carved with runes. She touched one, before snatching her hand back quickly as she felt a burning pain. "Ow!"

"I wouldn't touch that if I were you," Jon called over. He was rearranging the books on the new bookcase while Zatanna was unpacking two large travel bags full of clothes. "It's a reliquary, storage for things I don't want anyone to mess with by mistake."

"That's a good idea considering Beast Boy lives here too." Raven replied, annoyance creeping into her voice.

"I take it he isn't good with privacy?" Jon asked, taking a Stephen King novel from next to a tome that looked like it was bound in skin and placing it on a lower shelf.

"No." Raven replied curtly.

Jon joined Raven next to the chest. He was holding the bag of relics and artifacts from the night he had first arrived, handling them with greater care now that Zatanna was present. "I hate opening to." Jon complained to Raven, who looked over in surprise. The paladin placed the bag on the ground and held out his empty right hand.

There was a flash of light and the greatsword Oath appeared. Before Raven could ask what he was doing, he drew the blade against his palm. Blood welled from the cut and Jon dismissed Oath with another flash of light. He reached down and smeared the blood on the biggest of the locks securing the chest. There was a hissing sound and the blood bubbled and evaporated. The lock and its fellows all clicked open simultaneously.

"A blood lock." Raven said, impressed. "You have to cut yourself every time to open it?"

"Best security you can have. Plus, it's healed already." Jon showed her his palm. The cut, long and deep, had already stopped bleeding. Instead, it was a mass of clotted blood, sticky and crystallized.

"He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds." Jon quoted with a grin. "One of the Psalms." He opened the chest, its hinges squeaking, and tossed the bag of relics inside. There was a slight tinkle of breaking glass and Jon winced.

"You are so careless." Zatanna shouted angrily, striding over and smacking Jon across the head.

"Ow! Abusive woman." Jon complained. Raven laughed quietly to herself as the paladin was sprawled on the ground.

"You forgot the most dangerous item anyway." Zatanna crooked a finger at the bookcase and the largest of the books there floated over. It was the size of a paving slab, bound in soft leather and covered in runes. Runes that spelt _Necrotecuh._

As it drew closer, a wave of heat washed over Raven. Not like the intense, righteous fire of Jon's power, but an alive, invasive heat that snaked up her spine... calling to her...

Calling to her by name.

It knew her. It whispered to her, telling her to open it and learn. To take the power it offered and become greater than even her father...

"What in the seven hells are you doing girl."

Raven blinked in surprise. She was reaching out for the _Necrotecuh_. Zatanna glared at her, ready for anything.

"I, I uh, sorry. I d-don't know." Raven stammered.

"Here, let me take that from you Zee." Jon said smoothly. He took the book gingerly and tossed it unceremoniously into the reliquary. He kicked it close and reaffixed the locks and chains about it, a faint glow emanating from it as the final lock clicked in place. Impulsively, he snatched the top hat off Zatanna's head and gave it a toss.

"Ass!"

As Zatanna chased after her hat, Jon caught Raven's eye and jerked his head towards. Raven gave one last look at the chest before mouthing a 'thank you' and hurrying to the door. The last thing Raven heard before the door hissed shut was, "sooo you never did tell me how things with Constantine were, Zee."

...

"So what do you want to tell me about our new recruit?" Robin and Dr. Fate were in a secondary living room, decorated with scattered chairs and couches and a large wall-window that was a common feature in Titans Tower.

"That he is a good choice for you. He's strong, bulletproof, a flyer, attuned to magic, and wields a blade older than your ancestors. A worthy addition to your band." Dr. Fate mused.

"I know all of that already." Robin said, crossing arms over his chest. "What do I not know?"

"That Batman does not approve of this addition?"

Robin's face, what was not hidden by his mask, tightened. "He told you that did he?"

"Yes, more shouted it." Dr. Fate replied. "You haven't talked to Bruce yet?"

"No... I've been putting it off." Robin admitted, turning to watch the midday sun over Jump City Bay. "What were his problems with Jon?"

"He's a warrior. You can dress him up as one of you but in the end he has a mission far different from yours. He kills his foes, that is what he was empowered to do. " Dr. Fate declared.

Robin did not turn from the window. There was a long pause. "I know." He finally said.

"But you still invited him to join your team?" Dr. Fate asked, not shocked but merely curious.

"He's going to be my last resort. That night in the park taught me something." Robin replied bitterly, turning away from the window-wall to stare at Dr. Fate. "There's evil out there that we aren't prepared for. We couldn't toss Maxariae into a jail cell. We needed Jon here to kill it, he knows how to fight those demons or whatever they are."

"I see. So you would make Jon your executioner?" Dr. Fate asked thoughtfully. "Have you told him that?"

"Don't call it that, it's not like that at all. He's our backup, the one who can do whatever is required." Robin countered angrily. "And I have. He was fine with it."

"I'm not surprised he is fine with it. However, what happens to the metahuman criminals you normally face? Do they fall to his blade as well?" Dr. Fate retorted.

"No! He'll fight as we do. I told him that too. No sword on guys like Light or Mumbo." Robin said with a emphatic sweep of his arm.

"Bruce won't be pleased."

"I don't give a damn. This is my team and I'll make the decisions on who's on it."

Dr. Fate shook his head in amusement at the youth's defiance. "Of course you will. Just find a way to temper your language before you talk to Batman. Don't forget who pays the bills."

"I- you're right." Robin conceded, looking down at his feet.

"Don't worry. He may growl for a day or so, but he'll come around." Dr. Fate said with a short laugh. He patted the boy wonder on the shoulder. "Just say he's here for the demonic only though. Won't be lying technically."

Robin considered Dr. Fate's words carefully."...Alright, I can do ! You're fine with this? You just said he was a killer."

"Of course I'm fine with it. I'm extremely proud Jon found a spot on your team. I'm not Bruce, Robin. In my line of work, sometimes there is no other choice. Absolute Evil corrupts absolutely, and so must be crushed absolutely." Dr. Fate said wearily. The sorcerer consulted an arcane chronometer. "That time already?... I'll collect Zatanna and be off than. Keep me informed on Jon's progress."

…

"I don't like that Raven girl. Especially the way she looked at the _Necroteuch_... She's hiding something."

Jon, Zatanna, and Dr. Fate were on the roof of Titans Tower. Jon was saying a final goodbye to his friends as the sun slipped down to kiss the bay goodnight.

"I know why. She's a half-demon." Jon informed her.

"WHAT?" Zatanna exploded. "What are you playing at! Why haven't you, I don't know, done the deed?"

"She's no Maxariae, she seems to only want to do some good in the world." Jon replied defensively. "What about Jason Blood or the Blue Devil? You didn't ask me to fight them."

"They're not some angst-ridden half-breed. They weren't born demons, they can control what they've turned into because they have a human soul." Zatanna declared angrily, "the mix of human and demon never ends well, you can't change the nature of evil. It'll corrupt her one day, and her intentions."

"I know all this Zee... Why do you think I'm staying here?" Jon replied carefully. "I'm not going to condemn her for something out of her control. People deserve a chance to make their own fate."

Zatanna frowned, "So you are going to watch her in case of any corruption?"

Jon nodded, his face resolute."

"I don't know about this." Zatanna turned to Dr. Fate, who was standing a few feet away passively. "What do you think about this Kent?'

"I think... the decision is Jon's to make. For my opinion, I think its a good idea to have someone in Jump City to watch for any problems." Dr. Fate replied slowly.

"You're going to let this half-breed just roam free in such an important area. The secrets she probably has access to in the tower alone-" Zatanna argued angrily.

"-If Robin trusts her, it is good enough for me." Dr. Fate said firmly, "not our place to intervene."

"Still... I don't like this..." Zatanna said again, defeat creeping into her voice.

"Leave it alone Zatanna, Jon is more than capable." Dr. Fate sighed. "However, you should be making it a priority to find out what is her heritage, Jon. There will be trouble eventually and you're going to have to be ready for it."

"Yessir, I know what can happen." Jon replied grimly, his mind drifting back to the darkest day of his life. "And it won't happen again."

"Also, if a member of your order ever finds out what you are doing here... I can't guarantee they will be pleased." Dr. Fate warned. "Come, Zatanna. We're due at Stonehedge."

"Stonehedge eh? Trouble?" Jon asked quietly as Zatanna drew him into a deep embrace.

"Nothing we can't handle, just Enchantress being a bitch like always. Don't you worry." Zatanna replied warmly. She broke the embrace and planted an affectionate kiss on his forehead. "If she could see you know... She would be so proud of you."

"I-, thanks Zee. It means a lot... You better be off I guess." Jon said quietly. For a moment he was Jon the seventeen year old, not Jon the righteous Paladin, Jon the questing warrior. "Goodbye."

"Keep in touch, kiddo." Zatanna said with a wink.

"Farewell, Jon."

There was a brief flash of golden light and they were gone. Jon stood for a long time, watching the evening settle in. Finally, he said. "You can come out now, Raven."

The half-demon slipped from the shadows of the massive blocks of machinery that serviced the tower. "I had said I wanted to give back what you left up here." She said, walking over to Jon.

"Very true." He took the photograph from her and stared at it wistfully. "Stupid to throw it away like that. Thanks for catching it."

"She was your girlfriend wasn't she? You loved her. That's why it was so personal with Maxariae." Raven said, more statement than question.

"Yes."

"What was her name? What happened to her." Raven pressed on. Curiosity was new to her.

"If I tell you, you have to answer my question about you. Fair's fair." Jon stated firmly, sitting down on the edge of the roof.

Raven hesitated for a moment before nodding in agreement. "I-, fine I will."

"I made friends easily growing up." Jon began suddenly, staring down at the picture in his hand. "But those were my best friends. Guy is the big blond with the bowl cut. He was, still is I guess, captain of our high school football team, best linebacker I've ever seen. Kyle is the black-haired one, second string quarterback. He hated football though, artistic type, always drawing something new. His parents made him play. I was a defensive end if you care." Jon said with a laugh. "I don't think you really care about football though."

"I don't know it at all." Raven admitted, sitting next to Jon.

"Never mind then. Traci... Traci was my best friend since... forever. We grew up together. My dad died in the September attacks when I was very young. Mom never remarried, but we moved afterwards and met Traci and her mom in Catonsville. Traci's dad walked out on her mother before she was born. So we had something in common. She was a _Homo Magi_, someone who's born with an innate affinity for magic. Her father was where she had gotten her abilities, I think, but he ditched Traci and her mom. Her mom never showed any magical powers at all. I was normal back then too." Jon said with a small smile before continuing on.

"Zatanna had known Traci's father and when she found out about Traci, she began to teach her. Zee became a big sister to the both of us. I wasn't jealous of not being magical than, I was just happy for Traci. She was picked on a lot when we were young, mostly for the tattoo, damn thing showed up on one of her birthdays. I kept the worst of the pricks away of course. Of course in high school, the guys began to bug her for other reasons." Jon chuckled quietly to himself at his memories. "We kind of just fell together, ya know? It didn't feel different, dating I mean, just more 'official' I guess."

Raven listened quietly. After a while she realized she was... jealous of Jon. Jealous of his normal life, and his normal relationship and love.

"It all went bad when my mom became sick." There was a tone of sadness in Jon's voice now, heartache that would never leave him. "Late-stage leukemia, never had a chance. Zee and Traci were off on a trip to Shamballa or somewhere, I had no way to reach them. If they had been there in time... maybe... No, best not to think about that."

"Think about what?" Raven asked quietly.

"That maybe if they had returned before my mom had passed away... They could have healed her, much easier than bringing someone back from the dead... Instead they came back two hours too late." Jon answered.

"That's what happened? You and Traci tried to bring her back? With that book, the _Necrotecuh_?"

"The biggest mistake of our lives... That book corrupts anything it touches, twists your mind, makes you do things you'd never consider before." Jon spat. "It planted the idea in Traci's mind, and than mine. Zee was called away by Fate for some crisis, so she wasn't there to stop our insanity."

"I can't believe you two would try that." Raven said, shaking her head in disbelief. Anyone who knew anything about magic knew that resurrection was taboo to mortals. No mortal could pay the price required to bring a soul back from the dead. "Fools."

"You wouldn't understand... Have you ever watched your own mother wither away, knowing you could do nothing?" Jon demanded angrily, rounding on Raven.

"I suppose grief can make people things they would never normally do." Raven admitted.

"Don't judge until you walk a mile in someone else's shoes." Jon glared at her for a moment before looking away, his face burning with shame. "When we tried to perform the ritual, it broke down horribly. Traci couldn't spell, it was beyond anything she had ever attempted. A rift was torn in the boundaries between Hell and our world, and Traci's body and soul was taken by Maxariae. She killed over 147 people that night, doctors, nurses, patients... All dead because of me. For atonement, I was drafted into the Paladins. '_Only in Death does duty end'_."

They sat in a silence for a long moment.

"Well that's my story." Jon finally said. "Now what's yours?"

"What do you mean?" Raven asked, feeling a slight twinge of fear in her stomach.

Jon rolled his eyes at her. "Come on Raven, i'm not an idiot. You don't get powers like yours from a low-level demon looking for thrills. Maxariae apparently knew who your demonic parent was too."

"I'm not telling you that! That's too personal, mind your own business."

"Hypocrite, I just told you how I pressured my girlfriend into trying a spell killed her and hundreds of people, and you want to complain about privacy? Besides, a deal's a deal."

"I don't care!" Raven yelled. She tried to storm off but Jon caught her by the arm. "Let me go!"

"Just wait. You do know it would take me a week at most to find out your parentage. Wouldn't you rather tell me know? As a friend?" Jon said calmly.

Raven tried tugging her arm free, refusing to look at Jon. "I'm not your friend! I just met you! This isn't your business."

Jon let go of her arm, strung by the denial of friendship. He had always been one to form bonds easily and quickly. Surprisingly, Raven did not run off. Instead she stood there, her face still hidden from Jon.

"Raven... Come on. I can help you." Jon pleaded.

She whirled around and her small fist cracked against his jaw. "Ow." Jon said, more out of surprise than actual pain.

"Shut up!" Raven screamed. Jon saw she was crying, long trails of tears running down her pale-grey face, and cringed inwardly. You really want to know? Trigon, alright! Trigon the terrible, you bastard! You happy now?"

Jon's mind froze with shock. He had been expecting someone bad, the Conclave Deemonica or maybe a lesser archfiend, but Trigon? That meant she wasn't some product of a demon's forced mating with a human woman, but the literal harbinger of the apocalypse. "I-"

"I what?" Raven pointed at Oath, which Jon had summoned unconsciously at hearing Trigon's name. "You going to kill me now? That it?" She shoved him hard and stumbled back a foot. "Go on, do it!" She bared her neck for him. "Come on, what are you waiting for?" She sobbed, barely able to speak. "Aren't I a 'threat'?"

"Raven, I-." Jon hesitated, his mind working furiously. As a Paladin, his duty was clear, but his human side balked at it. What was one life compared to the billions she would kill? Even knowing that... He could not just...

"No." Jon declared, Oath disappearing with a flash of light. "I can't do that. I won't kill you just because of who your father was. Plus, between you and me I'm sure we can stop some prophecy."

"You mean you're not going to kill me? You'll help me?..."

"No, I'm not going to kill you Raven." Jon said slowly. "And of course I'll help you, we're teammates aren't we? Guess not friends, but I help my teammates."

Raven wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. "Well I guess we can be friends..."

"Great!" Jon said. "We'll worry about your father when we have to. Come on, let's get out of here. I'm sure the others will have a movie on to watch."

And with that, Raven felt a small stirring of hope deep down within herself, her seemingly doomed life seemed a little brighter than before. If anyone could stop Trigon, why not a demon slayer?

AN: no more long months of no writing! Hope that chapter wasn't too wordy or contrived, hated writing it. Probably why it took forever.


	5. Breaking the Faltine

AN: Back from a long hiatus... I promise this story will be updated regularly and completed, have to prove I can do this to myself. And yes, there was a name change

Chapter 5: Breaking the Faltine

S.T.A.R Labs Research Facility, Jump City location, midtown

"Dude, you need a costume." Beast Boy called back to Jon.

Deep within the bowels of Jump City's S.T.A.R. Labs facility, five Titans chased after the retreating sladebots. According to Robin's rushed briefing, they had stolen the latest in neural impulse technology. A sixth titan, and the newest, was lagging behind as he tried to discard his shredded sneaker mid-sprint.

Five minutes into his first mission and Jon had found himself woefully unprepared for the rigors of crime-fighting. His clothes were in tatters, victims of massed laser fire from the sladebots, as well as leaving him covered in small, painful burns. He had lost destroyed his left foot's sneaker shortly after, stomping down upon a bisected sladebot's skull. Jon's foot, iron-hard metahuman flesh, had been fine and crushed the metallic shell like an egg. The sneaker however, had been torn apart.

It was a problem he had never really considered before now.

Finally extricating his foot from the offending sneaker, he chased after his rapidly receding team, only for the remaining Titans to rapidly pull away down the tunnel from his awkward, flat-footed gait.

"Guys! Hey, guys! Wait up!" Jon called after the Titans, but it was pointless. They were far too ahead, and advanced technology was in need of recovering. He let out an explosive sigh and crouched down to the cold metal floor of the lab's underground level. _Proper mess I've made on my first outing_, he thought bitterly.

As if to answer, his earbud crackled and Robin's voice started in his ear. "Jon, head back to street level and cut them off, now! We can't let Slade have this tech," the boy wonder ordered, his voice out of breath and rushed.

Sighing again, Jon turned and sprinted back, awkwardly, to an access ladder.

"No way I'm climbing up that." Jon crouched down before preforming an odd combination jump/leap and _willed_ himself upwards. The paladin flew up the narrow service tunnel, tattered clothes flapping limply. Truthfully, he preferred his feet and fighting on the ground. Flying, or expending his power in the most flagrant disregard for the laws of physics possible, was tiring and still rather disorientating. However, it could be exhilarating at times.

Jon burst through the hatch at the end of ladder, erupting into a mass of terrified scientists and hassled officers of Jump City's Metahuman Police Unit, rather unaffectionately known as stormtroopers, or 'stormies' for short; a nickname born from their rather threatening high-tech arms and armor.

The new Titan pushed his way through the press of bodies, careful to avoid hurting anyone with his unnatural strength. Several 'stormies' shouted commands for him to start, most likely unaware of his extremely recent acceptance to the Teen Titans. Jon did not blame them. If a nearly half-naked teen had flown out of a service hatch while a robbery was underway, the paladin would have wanted to arrest him as well.

Outside was a commotion as well, the street full of people fleeing away from S.T.A.R. Labs while normal uniformed officers tried to manage the crowd and restrict access. Jon tried to scan the mass of people, going so far to levitate off the ground, for escaping sladebots. As if in answer to his search, there was a loud rumble as the street at the junction of 21st and Trinity Avenue exploded.

Jon made a half leap, half abortive attempt at flying over the intermediate crowd as five sladebots emerged from the dust cloud. The first, clutching a round disc that trailed wires fled as quickly as a birdarang in its knee joint allowed it. The four others moved to block Jon's path, and so those four sladebots had to die.

They tried to raise their pistols but Jon was already in motion. He leapt at the robots with wordless shout of fury on his lips as Oath appeared in his outstretched hands. The first was destroyed as it tried to level its pistol at the charging Titan. Jon's blade crunched into the softer, more flexible, joints at the Sladebot's facsimile of a throat, cleaving through the armored body and exiting out of the robot's hip in a spray of sparks and hydraulic fluid. The next two on the right deactivated together as a humming slice of Oath decapitated them both. The fourth managed to loose two blasts of energy off at Jon, eliciting a pained growl before the Titan rammed the blazing greatsword into the robot's sternum and wrenched sideways, cleaving it in half.

"So, you must be the new one," said a low, menacing voice from behind the Titan.

Jon turned to find the last sladebot. It carried the neural impulse unit in one hand, while the other pressed a laser pistol against a middle-aged woman's forehead.

"Don't." The voice commanded as Jon twitched forward at it, "hands up, throw the sword away." The robot gestured with the pistol, and Jon complied, the heavy blade clanging against the asphalt.

"One actual criminal and an army of drones, smart." Jon said cooly, raising his hands.

"Oh, I'm not here. I am miles away. Just decided to have a little talk with the newest Titan, it is so nice to see a different face around here. A brand new piece on the board, to shake up the formula." The voice emanating from the sladebot explained.

"Whatever, man. Just let the lady go and we can have a nice long chat."

"Sadly, this drone can't stay. Robin and his friends will be along shortly. Goodbye, for now." The sladebot shoved the woman aside. As Jon leapt forward, the robot turned smoothly and fired a bright blue beam.

….

"So... Is he alive?"

A brilliant orange sky, awash with the colors of a fading sunset stretched across his vision as a beautiful vista. Blurred figures loomed above him before resolving into the forms of his new teammates. Jon sat up slowly, grimacing in pain. His head felt as if Bizarro had been stomping upon it.

"Give him some room." A voice said, Jon thought it was Cyborg's.

"I haven't felt this bad since Junior Prom," Jon mumbled, rubbing at his forehead, which was already covered in a sterile gauze bandage. He clambered to his feet, only to come face to face with a rather angry-looking Robin.

"Slade got away with the technology!" The Titans' leaders declared, his spiky black hair covered in a faint coat of concrete dust. "You were supposed to intercept the drones! Now a dangerous madman has neural control tech!

"Listen, I'm sorry Robin. He had a hostage-" Jon started to explain, but Robin was already walking off, angrily kicking one of the destroyed sladebot's head as he passed it. Starfire floated after him, her face filled with concern.

"God, I screwed that up." Jon complained, rubbing at his temples to ease the migraine.

Cyborg patted him on the shoulder, "look man, it happens. Robin just gets way too nutty over Slade. He'll calm down."

"Plus, dude, you totally _destroyed_ these robots." Beast Boy exclaimed. The green teen went to kick the other robot skull only to stub his toe painfully. "Ow, ow, ow, ow..."

"We should find you a new set of clothing as well," Raven observed drily as she looked Jon over with an appraising glance. "The whole half-naked thing probably won't go over well with the public."

Jon blushed.

…...

"You wanted to see me Robin?" Jon asked, announcing his presence in Robin's evidence room with a double knock.

"Ah, Jon, come in." Robin replied with a wave. The evidence room was a dark and very cluttered room towards the bottom of Titan's Tower. It was filled with a whole host of different items, from high-tech weapons confiscated from super-villains to a large bank of computer terminals, a digitized archive filled to the brim with case files and criminal profiles. Robin's desk was similarly messy, covered in the dissected remains of recovered sladebot fragments and their weapons.

Robin put down the laser pistol he was examing and gave Jon a frank appraisal. "I wanted to apologize about yesterday. While Slade is going to be trouble with that technology, I shouldn't have yelled at you. You're new to this and didn't know our protocols for dealing with hostages. Frankly from what the witnesses said, none of us could have managed to get the tech back either."

"I understand, though I should have gone after the lead one in the beginning," Jon conceded.

"Mistakes happen," Robin admitted.

"I- well, did not imagine you saying that before now. I think Batman just had an aneurysm somewhere," Jon joked.

"You're probably right." Robin agreed with a short laugh. "I can't be hard on someone new to the job. So, how are you liking the Titans?"

"They're great! I love it here. Everyone's nice, but I think I get along with Raven best. I still kinda feel on the outside with the others, you know?" Jon said. "Also, I really need a costume and identity, can't go out in shorts every time a super-villain gets a bad idea."

"I noticed that about you and Raven. Honestly, it's pretty surprising, We've been teammates with her for months and barely gotten anything out of her... As for the other Titans, you just need some time to bond with them, get to know em, that sort of thing." Robin said, getting up from his desk and leading Jon out of the evidence room. "Spend some time with them this next week or two. As for the costume, we'll figure something out soon."

…...

A week after the S.T.A.R. Labs attack

"Aw, yeah, that's what I'm talking about," shouted Cyborg. His mechanical digits deftly working the Game Station Two's controller. On Titan's Tower rather large flatscreen, his racer took the lead as Beast Boy's skidded into third.

"No fair, man. The blue power-up is so random, completely takes skill out of the game." Beast Boy whined, tossing away his controller.

The controller bounced away on the large, half-moon couch before being scooped by Jon as he vaulted over the couch's back. 'Hey, guys. Can I play?" He asked, raising up the controller.

…...

Starfire drifted lazily through the Titan's common area. It was the mid-afternoon on a non-eventful day and everyone was busy being _boring_. "Hello, friend! Would you like to partake in the monopolizing of plastic houses for the profit of oneself!" She inquired gleefully, holding up a Monopoly board game box that had seen better days.

"Not now, Starfire, I'm busy. Go bother one of the others." Robin replied with a shooing gesture, not looking up from his pile of case folders he was organizing.

Starfire's face fell and she drifted away dejectedly before reaching where Raven was reading a large, leather-bound book.

"Raven! Would you like to partake in the application of coloring agents to one's-"

"No."

Again Starfire drifted away in rejection, finally settling miserably on the far end of the half-moon couch.

"Hey, Starfire. If you're so bored, why not go see what Jon is doing." Cyborg called to her before resuming his video game match with Beast Boy.

"Oh, that is a wonderful idea!" Starfire exclaimed. She zoomed away excitedly and began to search for the newest member, finally finding him exploring the small island Titan's Tower was built on. It was a pleasant day outside, the temperature a warmth typical of California weather as a bright sun shone down from a beautiful blue sky.

"Hello, new friend! May I ask if you are busy?" Starfire asked, buzzing around him excitedly.

"Not particularly," Jon admitted. "Want to join me on my walk?"

The tamaranean nodded enthusiastically and landed next to him. "So, lemme guess. The others are being boring?" Jon asked casually as the walked down the pathway from Titan's Tower.

"Well, Robin is busy doing work and Raven is reading, I do not like to bother either of them during that because they become lobstery... And Cyborg and Beast Boy are playing video games, and I do not partake because I destroy the controller occasionally..." Starfire explained hurriedly. "It is just some days they are very torfnak."

"Huh, I'm gonna assume you meant boring there." Jon replied. He liked the alien girl, but sometimes the cultural and lingual differences were annoying.

"Yes, they are the bore today." Starfire pouted.

"Know what you need, Starfire? A hobby. For when the team is off being, uh, turfnac." Jon decided as they made their way down to the small west facing beach.

"It is torfnak," Starfire said with a giggle, mostly from Jon's butchering of the tamaranean word. "What is a hobby?"

"It's like something you do for when you're not busy, you know for fun." Jon explained. He looked back to a small patch of grass outside Titan's Tower. "Hmm, I think I have a good idea for you, come on."

He took off from the ground and Starfire followed, the young heroes arcing through air and towards Jump City.

…

Downtown Jump City, near the docks

"So what is this place?" Starfire asked, following Jon through a crowded avenue.

"Farmer's Market," Jon replied. "Found it last week when I exploring the city. He stopped at a stand where an old woman was selling snacks and purchased two shish-kebabs, still hot from the grill.

"Mmh, this is most tasty!" Starfire nearly shouted as she bit eaten into the grilled chicken. She was attracting a lot of attention, partially from her over-exuberant personality and partially her figure, which was always, complimented by her normal outfit.

Jon laughed, "don't tell Beast Boy I bought you that. He'll go on about how meat is murder or whatever."

I will not!" Starfire promised gleefully and they continued their walk through the Farmer's Market, taking in the sights. "So what is this 'hobby' you are proposing?" She asked eventually.

"Well, back before I got my powers, my mom and I, along with some friends, would spend our time tending a garden in my town." Jon explained. "You know, where you grow flowers and sometimes vegetables." They stopped at another stall and Jon pointed out various types of flowers the florist was selling.

"Oh! They are most beautiful! And I can grow these on my own?" She began to pick out flowers she liked and the florist followed after her, filling up a brown bag with smaller bags of seeds and flower bulbs.

"Yes, of course Starfire."

Jon's credit card made an appearance as it soaked up the purchase of the varied amounts of seeds and bulbs, as well some basic gardening equipment he knew she would need.

"Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you!" Starfire shouted as she hugged Jon tightly, whose arms were weighed down with bags.

"Can't breathe." Jon gasped before she released him.

"So, this garden with your mom. May I see it, for the inspiration?" Starfire asked as they took off from the ground, to astonished shouts and gasps of bystanders.

"I, well, you can't. We don't do it anymore."

"How come?"

"She died, Starfire." The trip back to the tower was finished in silence, mostly because of the wind rushing in their faces but also because of Starfire's faux pas.

"I am sorry for before, Jon. I did not mean to hurt your feelings." Starfire apologized, her head bowed and avoiding contact as they landed at the patch of grass outside the tower.

"Don't worry about it." Jon replied, somewhat stonily before managing a small smile. "Here, come on, I'll show you how to make a garden.

The two Titans spent the rest of the afternoon enjoyably constructing Starfire's new garden. First, they excavated a long, slightly curved flowerbed that followed the path leading from Titan's Tower. Then, using smooth rocks from the island's small beaches, they lined it, giving it a definite shape and structure.

…

"Jon..."

"Hmm?" He looked up from where he was planting tulips and at Starfire, brushing his dirty hands carelessly on his shorts.

"I just wanted to say, if you want to talk about it. I too, have lost a k'norfka." Starfire said carefully, brushing a loose strand out of her face before planting another bulb daintily.

Jon sighed, "it is probably a good idea to talk about it." He said, continuing to plant flowers. "A year and a couple of months ago, my mom became very, very sick. My father had died when I was young as well, I barely knew him. For most of my life, it was just my mom and I, only child of course. I guess her death was the catalyst for all of this." He gestured at the tower and Starfire. "My powers and joining the Titans that is."

"What happened?"

"Well, long story short. I made an incredibly stupid mistake and people suffered for it that shouldn't have." Jon admitted. "After that, I've just been on the move constantly. Never settling down or getting used to this." He gestured and Oath appeared in his hand before he dismissed it just as quickly. "Lost contact with a lot of people from my hometown. Kyle, Guy... It's been tough, I miss home."

"I, too, miss my home." Starfire confessed. "This planet is very strange sometimes, and my powers set me apart from 'normal' humans as well. I do not fit in very well... I miss Gailfor and Tamaran.

"Gailfor? Is that your k'norfka? Is he your dad?"

"I think the appropriate word for him is guardian in your tongue. My parents died in a Citadel attack upon my planet when I was very young and my sister was... not very supportive. Gailfor raised me from when I was very small." Starfire reminisced sadly. "I like it here, but sometimes I feel quite out of weird."

"You mean 'weirded out'?" Jon asked and Starfire nodded in response. "Well, Starfire. If you ever have any problems or questions with Earth culture, well American at least. You can always come to me."

"I thank you, Jon. I am overjoyed you have joined the team and become our friend!"

The rest of the garden building passed in amicable smalltalk as Jon and Starfire got to know each other.

"There that should do it," Jon said as he covered the last bulb with a handful of earth. The sun was was beginning to droop in the sky, setting the ocean ablaze with orange light. Starfire gave a wordless exclamation of joy and hugged him again. "Remember to water them, but not too much! Otherwise, you'll drown them." Jon explained as the hug ended.

"Oh, thank you for this glorious hobby." Starfire said in an excited rush, spinning the paladin around. "Let me go retrieve our friends so that they may see our work of hands!"

…...

St. George's Cathedral, 1219 Romanii Street, near the end of Jon's second month with the Titans

St. George's Cathedral, number three on Time's list of top twenty-five historical landmarks of the west coast, was a massive edifice of marble, concrete, and glass. Constructed in the Gothic style, it was the second largest cathedral in America, losing out only to it's architectural twin St. John The Divine in Gotham. It was the center of the Jump City diocese led by Bishop Williams, an important social and political axis of Jump City.

The inside of the cathedral was magnificent; on the outside, three slender spires reached towards the sky. On the inside; a high, vaulted ceiling, elegant stained glass windows illustrating the works of St. George, and traditional, weight supporting arches of black marble. A long nave, flanked by row after row of pews led to the altar, itself a hulking mass of white marble and granite. Above the altar, the midday light streamed through the glass centerpiece, which depicted St. George piercing the neck of a foul wyrm with his spear.

Raven had found the first two months of Jon's joining of the team unusually enjoyable and bonded well with the paladin, which was more than a little surprising to the other Titans. As such she decided to find out where he had gone this morning.

She found Jon sitting alone in one of the back, right pews. He was dressed in khakis and a polo shirt, trying to be somewhat presentable at least. The rest of the cathedral was empty at this time, morning mass had ended hours ago and there was still another hour before the noon mass.

"There you are," Raven called aloud as she shuffled down the pew to sit next to Jon.

"Oh, hey, Raven. You're looking nice today," Jon answered in greeting, putting aside the mass of papers he had been examining.

She raised an eyebrow at the compliment. "What's that supposed to mean? I tend to wear the same outfit most days."

Jon blushed scarlet, "I just meant, ah, never mind... So what brings you here?

"Robin said you were out on the city, looking up leads on those dead cultists from the night you first came here. I thought I would help." Raven explained cooly, though inwardly blushing. She turned to view the entire cathedral, lest her face betray her pleasure at his noticing of how she looked.

"Meh, waste of time to be honest." Jon tossed the papers he had been reviewing onto the pew and leaned back. "One of the cultists that the police managed to id, Frederick Hahn, was a janitor here. I searched the place and where he kept his supplies and worked but found nothing. No family or friends of note, just some insane scribblings in his office about how he wanted to burn this place down. Oh well, I guess. The idiots that summoned Maxarie probably made up the entire cell in this city."

"Well, that's good news, isn't it?" Raven asked, trying to put on a positive air. "Nothing to worry about demon-related."

"Yeah, good way to look at it." Jon agreed, not missing the implicitness in that statement. They sat in silence for a few moments before he spoke up again. "Nice place, isn't it?"

"If churches are your thing, I guess. I've never been a devout one honestly, surprised I made it in here without my skin catching fire. Though, it makes sense for you to be here. When you aren't searching the janitor's closet that is." Raven replied with a slight smirk.

Jon grinned at her, "got me there. It's funny, I am not very devout either to be honest."

"Oh?" Raven shot him a questioning look. "I would have thought it would come with the job."

Jon shrugged, "I mean I've always been a believer. Just not the best attendance record, or following social policy for that matter. You don't go to hell for premarital sex, condoms aren't evil, and no one should be denied the right to be with the person he or she love. The institution has a lot to answer for too, but despite all that I still recognize most important thing it helps provide down among common people."

"And that is?"

"Faith, and buy extension, Hope. The greatest, or most dangerous, thing in the world, depending on your point of view." Jon declared emphatically. "I'm not saying you need religion to believe in something, plenty of people don't, but it does provide many with comfort. It, with its twin Hope, are probably some of the scariest things someone can have in his or her heart. It's made people do both great and terrible things throughout history. Still, it is a good thing to have. I like organized religion for that reason, the structure it helps provide."

"Is that what kept you going during your hunt for that demoness? Faith?" Raven questioned.

Jon's face darkened momentarily, "no, that was something darker. Vengeance can keep someone going as well, just not the best food for the soul. These days I'm trying to be more hopeful, looking on the brighter side of life," he continued, his face perking back up with a smile.

Raven gave him am unconvinced look, "starting to feel like you're trying to tell me something here..."

"Ha, you caught me. I just meant, maybe try being more hopeful about things is all," Jon explained. "You got me on your side after all."

"Arrogant ass." She gave him a playful slap on the arm, a motion that surprised both of them. "I don't know though Jon... Prophecies aren't the easiest thing to deny."

"Oh, come on. Don't give me that. Between the two of us, I'm sure we'll figure something out." He stood up and offered Raven his hand, rather pointlessly but she understood the gesture. "Come on, lets go get some lunch before going back to the Tower. I'll buy."

Raven hesitated for a moment in confusion before taking the proffered hand, "Ok." She said, letting out a rare, half-smile. But before the two could leave, there was an alarm from Jon's belt and the jewel brooch on Raven's cloak began to flash.

Jon sighed in exasperation.

…

"What's the problem, guys?" Jon asked, landing next to the other Titans with Raven. They were waiting outside Jump City's Museum, a two storey building with Neo-Grecian influences set within the financial district. He immediately noticed the large amounts of regular police and 'stormies' setting up a perimeter around the museum.

"We've got a metahuman break in, the security guards that got out made it sound like the attack was magical in nature so we're going in first." Robin explained. "We'll need you and Raven taking point if there is a magic-user involved."

"Check out these doors," Raven called. She was examining the big, double doors at the museum's entrace. They were made of wood but seemed to have been melted, as if they were metal and exposed to a great heat. "I don't think I've ever seen magic like this."

Jon walked over and began to look over the melted wood, the rest of the Titans following him up the wide stairs to the entrance. "Chaos magic, definitely Chaos magic. Had to be for the wood to lose molecular cohesion like this."

"What would a 'Chaos" user, whatever that is, be doing here?" Best Boy questioned. He poked at the melted wood and recoiled at the unnatural texture.

"Not sure, maybe some sort of artifact or a money heist?" Jon mused. "Not exactly a normal villain, even a normal magic-user."

"Maybe this could be the reason," Starfire offered, holding out a pamphlet that had been previously laying on the front steps.

Raven took it from her and scanned it quickly. "Here this could be it, there's a new exhibit of relics from supposedly 'lost' civilizations. Pretty big names; Shamballan, Atlantean, Hyborean, Lustrian..."

"Any big artifacts listed by name." Jon asked, peering over her shoulder. Normally, Raven would have brushed him back with her powers for the personal space violation but oddly this time she relented.

"Nothing, nothing, fake... By the Dreaming, the Idol of Kulkoth? They can't have that!" Raven nearly shouted. Jon snatched the pamphlet from her hands and stared at the seemingly innocuous listing in shock.

"The Idol of whosit whatsit?" Cyborg asked, echoing the rest of the Titans confusion. "One of you really needs to explain what's so bad about this idol."

"It's an immensely powerful artifact from the Lustrian civilization." Jon explained, tossing aside the pamphlet. "Some records say it can be used as a potent magical nullifier, but the general agreement in the magical community is that it can open doorways in space-time."

"So what's the big deal? It opens the doorways, I can do that as a dinosaur." Beast Boy shifted into an Utahraptor to demonstrate his point.

Jon shot him a withering look. "Don't be stupid."

"Sorry." Beast Boy replied meekly, shifting back into his green human form.

"Space-time means anywhere, anytime. Even another reality possibly. Anyone with that kind of power would be unstoppable." Raven explained.

"Is there any chance this could be a fake? You said plenty of other things on that list were fake." Robin asked, picking up the discarded pamphlet.

"That's because I knew those items had already been discovered," Raven countered.

"Also, this was the big new discovery that Carter Hall, the famous archeologist Beast Boy before you ask, made that has been all over the news. I mean, it could be fake, but we can't pin all our hopes on that." There was a flash as Jon summoned Oath, the bright silver blade shimmering with cyan lightning from the residue magic. "Let's get in there." He walked inside, Raven following closely.

"You'd think something like that would be under heavy guard." Cyborg complained as the rest of the Titans followed them.

"The police chief said there was, but he hasn't heard from them in over an hour," Robin explained. "Which means..."

"They are still inside with the villain." Starfire finished for him.

…

Jon and led the way, his bright sword held out ahead of him while Raven covered him from behind, her closed fists constantly swirling with dark power.

"Can you feel that? That grating feeling." Jon whispered to Raven, checking an exhibit hall before waving her forward.

"Yes, like nails in my head. I think something is already happening. We've got to move faster." Raven said, breaking into a run down a side hallway. Jon followed her.

"They work well together." Starfire whispered to Robin, who shushed her and followed after them.

...

"Oh, something is definitely happening," Jon yelled as the six Titans sprinted down a dark hallway. They were heading to the back storage rooms of the museum and had already past two of the security detail, both killed in particularly gruesome ways, which had shaken the Titans.

"Everyone be on guard. This is going to be messy." Robin said as they finally the reached armored vault doors.

The Titans took up positions and at Robin's go ahead, Starfire wrenched the entrance to the museum's storage open.

Jon and Raven led the way, moving fast before stopping short as they saw what waited for them. The storage room was large, the size of a small warehouse. Its walls were lined with crates, which were filled with the new exhibit pieces. A space was cleared in the middle of the room, and there they found a gruesome display.

Eight of Jump City's Metahuman unit were lain out in a circle, their blood used to form a casting circle. A ninth figure, alive and cloaked, danced among the bodies while cackling madly. In his hands was a small figurine, a hideous beast formed in bronze.

"The poor stormies..." Beast Boy managed, before backing away and wretching violently.

"What! Who's there? Who interrupts Sarnok's dance!" The figure demanded, his hood fell away from his face and the Titans recoiled. The Chaos magick sorcerer had a scarred, porcine face. One empty socket wept black fluid as another twisted wildly, focusing on each Titan in turn.

"You're under arrest!" Robin yelled, his angry declaration falling somewhat short. Sarnok snorted, the sound obscenely wet and unleashed a blast of coruscating beam of purple light at at Robin, who leapt aside. The blast carved a furrow through the floor, melting it like wax. The sorcerer began to chant in earnest, holding the glowing idol before him.

"Titans! Go!" Robin commanded as he rolled to his feet.

Starfire and Cyborg led the attack, unleashing starbolts and blasts of sonic power respectively. When the smoke cleared, Sarnok was still chanting, a sphere of power shrouding him from harm. Raven tried to seize him with her powers but he burnt away the darkness with a gesture that generated purple fire. The half-demon cried out in pain from the feedback and fell, forcing Cyborg to catch her.

All the while Sarknok kept chanting.

"If we keep keep doing this and anyone of us is hit, they'll be killed." Jon thought out loud as he watched Starfire desperately flee another bolt of purple lightning. The bodies framing the circle were beginning to dissolve now, their matter twisting together to form a doorway of black stone in the circle's middle. "Have to finish this now..."

Jon began to charge forward, slowly building up speed. His was not the charge of a berserker but a patient stride of a warrior making a confident approach. _Need to use Oath, Robin will have to forgive me_... The blade appeared in his hands and he raised it up for the killing blow.

Sarnok turned to see Jon bearing down upon him and squealed in terror. The Chaos sorcerer manifested a shield which vibrated as Jon hacked into it.

"No, no, no! The doorway is not complete! It won't take me home yet!" Sarnok protested, his will fighting against Jon's strength. Jon gave a non-verbal response and pushed harder, forcing Sarnok closer and closer to the black doorway.

"You cruel, wretched boy! Why won't you let Sarnok go home!" The sorcerer cried, his free hand groping behind him wildly for the doorknob.

"Hngh, shut up and die, dog breath." Jon grunted, he could feel the mad man's power failing against Oath. His eyes were glowing with power now as he fully exerted himself. The paladin's blood was up now; the human body's natural fight response, magnified by the biological and supernatural changes wrought upon him. The rest of the Titans watched, unsure if they should intervene.

"Jon... He's getting close to the door. Jon!" Raven tried to warn, but too late. Sarnok's hand turned the doorknob and the door sprang open, revealing a hazy portal. A howling wind arose in the storage room as the black doorway began to suck everything into it. Crates filled with artifacts flew through the air and into the portal, and the Titans were forced to grab onto anything within reach to keep from being sucked away.

Beast Boy, in the form of a giant squid managed to wrap most of his tentacles around a large stone pillar, two others holding onto Robin, who was vertical from the force of the doorway's pull. Cyborg and Starfire each grabbed ahold of the storage room's own doorway with a one hand, devoting the other to holding onto Raven and keeping her from being sucked away.

Sarnok and Jon were not so lucky. "I don't even know where this goes!" Sarnok cried out before a crate smashed into him. The Chaos sorcerer, along with the Idol of Kulkoth, tumbled away into the doorway and disappeared. Jon fought against the all-encompassing wind, punching a handhold into the floor as well as stabbing Oath deep inside it. It was not just the wind pulling at everything, it was a force, like gravity, dragging everything into the black doorway's unfinished embrace.

Crates were flying in earnest, and several slammed into Jon, nearly driving him into the portal. Finally realization struck Jon, he knew what he had to do. He twisted in the air, he was now vertical and only holding onto Oath, and faced Cyborg, Starfire, and most importantly, Raven.

"I'm going to need a rain date on that lunch," He shouted.

"No! Stop! Don't do it! We can fix this!" Raven screamed, dreading what Jon was about to do.

"In case I don't see you guys- good afternoon, good evening, and good night!" Jon bellowed to the other Titans. "Heh that was corny, always wanted to say that though," he muttered before letting go of Oath.

He turned in the air and in the split second before the doorway's portal consumed him, he summoned Oath back to his hand and sliced through the doorway's frame. The doorway, its mystical bindings severed by Oath, slammed shut before falling to pieces. The howling wind died... but Jon was gone through the portal.

Like he never existed at all.

…...

It was a week after Jon's disappearance through the black doorway, and there had been no sign of him. What stung most was the uncertainty of it most powerful magicians of the Justice League had tried everything in their power before declaring Jon lost to the aether.

"First Traci... now Jon," Zatanna sobbed into a silken handkerchief. "It's not goddamn fair." Dr. Fate patted her on the back in what he meant as a comforting gesture, but she shrugged him off.

"Let her be, Kent." An exotic-looking woman at his side said. Her name was Inza, Dr. Fate's wife, and another friend of Jon's. Kid Flash was also in attendance, his normally loquacious personality completely silent and his gaze distant. The four outsiders were the only non-Titan who had managed to make the small memorial service Robin had planned.

They and the Titans, now reduced to five, stood at Starfire's garden, which was filled with tiny green shoots. Robin had thought it a fitting place to lay Jon's memorial. He moved forward now, placing a small plaque and each of the Titans said a few words about Jon's short time with the team.

Then came Dr. Fate and Inza's brief eulogy, followed by Kid Flash, who managed to mumble a nearly incomprehensible, "I'll miss you, man."

Afterwards, the Titans had retreated back inside their tower, not before Robin gifted Kid Flash with his own honorary communicator. The speedster managed to only stare it numbly before taking off, heading back to Central City.

Dr. Fate and Inza disappeared with a flash, teleporting back to their own dimension. Leaving only Raven, who had refused to say anything and deflected all consolation from the Titans and perched herself on a boulder to stare at the setting sun, and Zatanna.

"He talked about you, a lot. You know that right?" Zatanna said as she dabbed at her eyes, walking over to the boulder. Raven sat in silence and did not reply. "Look, do you have any idea where he could be? Any clues? I don't care what you are, I just want to find the kid," she continued.

"Anywhere," Raven managed to croak out, her first words in days.. "He could be anywhere. Sinnderman's writings say the Idol of Kulkoth could break through the Faltine. Jon could be anywhere."

"Goddamnit..." Zatanna muttered, before pulling herself together with a snifflle. "I have to go- I need a drink, I can't stay here... with all this. Listen, kid. I know you meant something fierce to Jon. Me and Fate, we'll be in touch, we can help you too." The magician raised up a hand to the half-demon but she sat immobile, staring away at the Pacific Ocean. Zatanna faltered and let her hand drop, "I'll see you around."

And with that, the magician disappeared, leaving Raven alone on her boulder. "No you won't," Raven muttered to herself, hugging her knees close to her body. "No one's there for me. I'm just alone." Tears ran down grey skin as she watched the day's light die with her hopes. "Always alone."

…...

An incalculable distance through endless realities away from the crying half-demon, Jon woke with a start. The paladin climbed unsteadily to his feet, his body aching in every conceivable way. His stomach rebelled at the sudden movement, and he fell back to his knees, retching upon the dusty ground and wringing his stomach dry.

It took another long couple of minutes before he had the strength to stand again and he took in his surroundings. He was on a lonely pillar of rock suspended high above a barely perceptible wasteland of mustard colored sand. Above him, a red sun poked through a sky filled with diseased looking clouds. The air, filled with gritty dust and other poisons rasped in his dry mouth, and without his biological alterations gifted along with his powers, he would have found himself choking on the foul mixture.

"Gods below... Where am I?" Jon whispered to himself. He took a staggering step and felt himself nudge something in the sand. Reaching down, he searched the ground and found a small piece of brass. He stared at for a moment, uncomprehending, before realizing what it was.

It was a part of the Idol of Kulkoth, half of it if he remembered what it look like correctly. Job tucked it into his pocket, and as he did that the wind shifted and revealed a new sight. Far away, a spire of metal rose from the wasteland. Shaped like a termite hive brought to the magnitude of a mountain, it loomed above the distant plains, the largest thing Jon had ever seen.

Before it, he could see two vast armies clash in the wastes. Small darts and puffs of light were exchanged as dark shapes wheeled above them like birds of prey, and Jon could hear a dull, distant roar. It was the sound of war, screams and explosions all merging together into one monstrous sound. Before he could even begin to fathom the conflict below him, he felt a familiar tingling sensation in the back of his skull and Oath appeared, unbidden, in his right hand. Jon drew comfort from the silver blade even as he recognized the tingling. There were demons there, out in the battlefield.

Jon took off for the war without a second thought. Truthfully, his mind was still a mass of confusion, still unsure where and when he was, but the Great Enemy's presence called to him.

He had a job to do.

AN: Needed a reason for him to not be around for seasons 2-4, hope it doesn't seem too contrived. Leave any comments or concerns as always.


	6. Across the Universe

AN: This and the next chapter, out of all the ones I've planned out (which is all basically) I fear the most for. I just hope you all are okay with the split story-telling and the different universe I'm slightly crossing over with. I think it is pretty obvious which events I refer to on the Titans side.

Ch: 6 Across the Universe

_Time dragged on... And while the Teen Titans expanded their roster and developed even more into the heroes they were, Jon was dealt a less enjoyable hand..._

…...

Imperial records state that the final battle for Skersia Hive was a "triumphant display of Imperial dominance over the heretical hordes. That "the 85th Cadian Shock and 31st Tallarn regiments held the enemy in place while the vaunted Adeptus Astartes, the Space Marines, dropped from the heavens and smote the Archenemy".

They did not state how the battle had originally begun as a desperate last stand against the overwhelming might of the Chaos forces. Omitted from the official records were the severe tactical blunders committed by Colonel Janus Tiburon [executed for incompetence circa 996.M41] that allowed the Archenemy to threaten the hive city of three billion souls in the first place. The fact that the Astartes teleport assault had been seen as a suicide mission to allow the bulk of the Imperial Guard to regroup within Skersia was not recorded.

Where the both the official and unofficial records agree however, was that the Battle for Skersia was the first appearance of the "Unknown Primarch", who was declared a "manifestation of the Emperor's Will and divine retribution upon the traitors." Both records went into glowing detail of how the "Unknown Primarch appeared in the midst of the battle and slew the daemonic herald leading the Archenemy host", which led to a great rout and slaughter of the vile heretics. This was of course, perfectly true.

Where both the official and unofficial both diverge from the truth is the resolution of the battle, stating that upon driving the traitors into retreat, the Unknown Primarch ascended with a honor guard of Astartes to the Emperor's Spear, a _Retribution_-class Battleship, which was in orbit above Skerisa. There the hero had met with Lord Militant General Helios, Inquisitor Lord Atia, and Brother-Captain Anastus to discuss the eradication of the Chaos filth infecting the sub-sector.

The truth of this was rather different.

…...

Titan's Tower Common Area

"Well, she seems... Comfortable." Raven declared drily, part of her feeling acute resentment for unknown reasons.

"I wonder how long it's been since she had a decent place to crash for the night." Beast Boy said, ignoring Raven.

They watched the willowy blonde, the one that had displayed such extraordinary power, yawn before stretching out on the common area's couch like some sort of savannah predator before promptly falling asleep.

"She needs more than a place to crash," Robin mused.

"She needs a home..." Starfire concluded.

"Why not our home?" Beast Boy asked the other Titans. "She could stay here with us."

"Yes!" Starfire agreed with glee.

"I don't know..." Raven said slowly as she thought it over.

"She would make a good addition to the team," Cyborg offered.

"Maybe... Let's ask her to train with us tomorrow. We need to see what she can do." Robin decided, not realizing Terra had heard him as well.

…...

The Emperor's Spear, a _Retribution_-class Battleship in orbit above Skersia Prime

The exiled Titan sat alone on a simple cot, made for someone far bigger than he was. The room he waited in, more like a cell, was spartan with only a footlocker and wash bowl for personal amenities. There was a faint bass _thrum_ in the background, the rumble of the ship's immense plasma engines that permeated the entirety of the warship. As Jon surveyed his dimly lit surroundings, he contemplated how it all came to this.

He remembered the battle for Skersia Hive, a swirling maelstrom of violence and bloodshed. Jon had come out of the sky like an avenging angel, crashing into a mass of demons with the force of a meteor. He knew nothing of who or what the battle was being fought over, only that his senses were telling demons were manifested upon reality like an ugly stain. The paladin had succumbed to his battle lust, a savage, instinctive joy as he laid into the hellspawn with Oath. It had felt... _righteous_, the savage punishment meted out upon the neverborn for their innumerable crimes against humanity, He fought his way to the heart of the horde, where he had found the leader. It was the strongest demon he had ever faced, an enormous, snake-headed monstrosity of iridescent scales and and batwings. Jon knew nothing of the demon's nature, only that it had taken fourteen minutes of the hardest fighting of his life before Oath had shattered its unholy spear and carved open its chest to split its foul heart. The wounds the monster had dealt him... were severe to say the least.

After that... He remembered the demon's corpse dissolving and massive, armored giants of grey looming out of the dust and then... frantic surgery followed by darkness. Which brought him back to the here and now.

Jon ran his hands over the rough, bronze surface over the Idol of Kulkoth. It was such a small thing, he thought, ugly too; shaped like a monstrous hybrid of dragon and wolf. But it held such _power_... enormous, reality tearing power. Even just holding it, Jon could feel the cold, grating energy that emanated from it. It was his ticket home, back to the real Earth and his real reality.

The only problem was Jon could not form it with only just his half. He had tried, an inexperienced wielder of such of relics, and only managed to receive a faint flash of his friends, who were fighting in a mine alongside some girl with golden hair. He dared not to do more than focusing on the Titans after that. Jon had no idea the what would happen, and his new found 'allies' would most likely not be pleased with any dimensional rifts.

Jon snorted at the thought; 'allies', that was a poor way to describe them. They had subdued him first, using some sort of psychic attack, and then tortured him. His sudden appearance and unique power level had caused quite a stir. The Inquisitor Lord Atia Juliana, or as Jon as starting to think of her, the 'Mean Old Bitch', had been insistent on his corruption, arguing that Jon should have been killed as some sort of warp-spawned heretic.

The moderating influence had been the leader of the armored giants, Brother-Captain Anastus of the Grey Knights. Jon was now aware that this sympathy had come partially from the immense esteem his slaying of the demonic leader had earned, and partially from their shared duty. From what he had learned, the Grey Knights were demon slayers as well, trained and genetically enhanced to be the Imperium's finest weapon against this reality's demons. Jon respected them. What little he had seen of the Astartes, another term for them, had shown them to be honorable warriors and possessed of a fierce martial pride.

Now he waited for the Inquisitor and the Captain to return. Jon knew what they were going to ask, and he knew what his response was going to be. They were going to ask him to fight for them in their war for Sub-sector Skersia, just a tiny part of a vast, galactic empire. They were going to ask him to be a religious figurehead, an icon of their intense fervor towards this 'God-Emperor' to bind together their broken army. And they were going to ask him to kill, to take his blade against traitor hordes and aliens alike, to know war and its trauma and be their champion.

And Jon was going to accept. He was going to do this because it was the only way. Their help was the only way he could find the Idol's other half which he could sense out in the darkness of space. If he could reunite the fragments, Jon could leave this miserable reality of endless war and see his friends again; Zee, Fate, Wally, the Titans... Raven...

So he would accept their offer and he would do these terrible things. He really had no choice in the matter.

…...

Titan's Tower Common Area

It was late at night, the Titans and their new recurit only just returning from the diamond mine.

"Well guys, it's been real. Seriously, thanks for everything, but I should-" The willowy blonde, Terra, began, throwing her traveling bag and gear onto her slight frame and heading for the exit.

"Don't even think about it." Cyborg interrupted, standing between her and the door.

Terra turned to look back at the other Titans who were gathered around excitedly. "Okay, what's going on?"

"Well..." Raven began.

"We talked it over and..."

"We would wish to stay here! With us!" Starfire exclaimed with glee.

"We think you would make a great addition to our team."

"Soooo, wanna be a Titan?" Beast Boy offered.

"Me? Really?" Terra asked, accepting a communicator from Robin.

"Of course, you'll need more training," Robin explained. "I know you have trouble controlling your powers, and we can help-"

Terra recoiled and dropped the communicator to the red-carpeted floor. "You told him?" Terra demanded of Beast Boy.

"I didn't!" Beast Boy pleaded.

"You promised. You lied to me! You lied!" She screamed at the green Titan before fleeing out the exit.

"Terra, no! Wait!" Beast Boy cried out to her as she fled.

…...

On board the The Emperor's Spear

Lord Inquisitor Atia Juliana stood alone in a shrouded observation bay. She was tall and regal, clad in ornate, contoured power armor that hissed in time with her movements. Her face had a mask like quality to it, indicating a large amount of rejuvenation work. The woman's throat was part flesh, part mechanical device that swept upwards like a high collar. She was best described as ruthless, willing to go to any end for the Imperium and by extension, the God-Emperor.

Below her, the newly discovered phenomena, or 'Jon' as he named himself, was in a surgical theater. An apothecary of the Grey Knights and multiple Magos Biologis were examining him, analyzing his biological fundamentals. There was a sanctioned psyker; a small, sickly child hidden away from Jon by a psychic null screen. The surrounding floor around her was covered in hoar frost as the malnourished girl mumbled and twitched.

The door to the observation bay hissed open and a series of loud reverberations heralded Brother-Captain Anastus' arrival. He, like all Astartes, was genetically-engineered super soldier, forged to fight the wars that had waited for humanity among the stars. Astartes, or 'Space Marines' as some citizens of the Imperium called them, were massive and broad, packed with muscle and other genetic enhancements. Anastus, in his bulky relic armor, was a mighty figure, towering over the even tall Inquisitor.

"Our find is very interesting, Magos Urecht's report," Atia said in greeting, handing Anastus a data-slate. "His enhancements are incredibly; muscle density tests puts him at least Astartes level strength, but when put into practical use, he exhibits strength far beyond that. Bone toughness, agility, and mental architecture have similarly been increased. His blood clots at near Astartes rate and his kidneys show remarkable detoxification power. As you can see, he is almost completely healed from his fight with the neverborn. There is a list of other general enhancements as well."

"Most impressive," Anastus agreed, and Atia was struck by how his upsized digits managed to deftly work the small data-pad's controls.

"The enhancements that he exhibits without a biological source are driving the Magos mad, well madder than most of them are. They've ruled out any warp-based explanation with some tests but they cannot explain the upper limits to his strength, his general invulnerability, and his ability to fly." The inquisitor continued.

"Is that why you have that witchbreed down there?" Anastus inquired, his gothic style helm looking up from the data-pad to survey the small psyker working away from Jon's notice.

Atia hesitated for a moment, weighing her options. She and the Brother-Captain had a complex relationship. While she, as an inquisitor lord; had vasts amounts of political power in the Ordo Malleus, the sect of the Inquisition charged with daemonic threats, and the Grey Knights, who served the Ordo as their armed forces, Anastus was a willful one, prone to challenging her decisions and refusing cooperation unless his concerns were met. Part of her enjoyed the power to command the legendary daemon-hunters, but she had to respect their own will and preferences. Anastus for one, liked to be informed and was too honorable for her own tastes. No harm could come of it though, the inquisitor thought.

"She's preforming low level psycho-conditioning and hypnotherapy of the subject. Further sessions will be explained as tests for corruption, which is why I insisted upon them during the 'bargaining'. Atia explained, saying the last word with no small amount of disdain.

Anastus looked around at her, clearly surprised even though his armor and helm hid away all expression. "Psycho-conditioning? You are indoctrinating him?"

"Of course I am. What did you think I was just going to let him gak off at the end of this campaign? You were psycho-conditioned as an aspirant, were you not?"

"Yes, but I chose that. It is to teach us to use our new enhancements, biological and mental, as well as guard us against the touch of Chaos. It brings us up from humanity and allows our minds to fully be in service to the Emperor and his worship," Anastus said.

"Exactly, which is why I am doing it to Jon." Inquisitor Atia replied, a faint tone of condescension. "Did you honestly think I was going to allow him to return to his 'home-reality' if such a thing is possible? This boy changes everything, do you know what the common guardsmen are calling him? The 'Unknown Primarch', and by the throne, he could be. Tell me that doesn't put a shiver down your spine, Anastus. He will go to Terra." She finished, turning back to view Jon who was twitching feebly upon the surgical table as the small psyker worked her warpcraft.

Anastus was silent for a long moment before heading for the observation bay's exit, "what I thought, inquisitor, is that you had struck an honorable deal." The Astartes responded in his low, angry tone.

"Is this going to be a problem, Brother-Captain?" The inquisitor called after him.

"No, Atia. I'm just disappointed by your treachery." The observation bay door hissed shut behind him.

"And that, Anastus, is why I'm in charge of the hard decisions. Honor?... I'm an inquisitor." Atia murmured to herself, her attention once again turning to the very curious teen.

…...

The shadow-beast loomed from the common area's wall window, four red eyes glaring down upon her. Behind her, the swarm of demonic rats flowed together like a black tide while the eldritch horror born of the B-movie _Wicked Scary _loomed above them.

"Stay back! you don't scare me," Raven nearly screamed. She backed away from the skeletal, avian creature as its wing tips slammed down into the floor

"I'm not afraid, I'm not afraid, I'm not afraid!" Raven whimpered, sinking to her knees in terror as the monsters gathered around her.

And then, realization snaked down her spine like a cold shower. "I'm afraid... I am afraid, but that doesn't mean I can't fight back!" She proclaimed, rising into the air on invisible waves of power.

"Azarath _Metrion_ _**ZINTHOS!"**_

A black wave of power erupted out from Raven's body and dragged the dark shadow-beasts back to their creator. The energy swirled around her, too much to contain before erupting from the half-demon. For a brief moment, Jump City's night sky was filled the sight of an avian entity, terrifying and majestic. It let out an unearthly cry before dematerializing, its death as swift as its birth.

Inside the Tower, Raven fell to the floor and knew no more.

...

She woke slowly, to find her friends and fellow teammates standing above her, concern etched on their faces.

"You all are okay?" Raven asked weakly as Cyborg pulled her to her feet.

"We were never in any danger," Robin explained.

"Say what!"

"Did you not see the monsters?" Beast Boy exclaimed.

"We saw them, but they were never really there. Raven was afraid, but when she wouldn't talk about it, the fear found another way out." Robin continued on for the benefit of his team.

Starfire gave a gasp as comprehension dawned upon her, "her powers!"

"-Once you accepted your fear, you regained control over it." Robin finished, addressing Raven directly now.

"You mean Raven made all those creepy-crawly things by accident?" Beast Boy asked.

"Uh... Sorry?" Raven offered, her pale, grey skin flushing with embarrassment. The light of dawn spilled into the common area as the new sun rose, marking the end of a long night.

Cyborg yawned loudly, stretching his biological and mechanical joints, "sunrise, time for bed."

"You know... Your haunted house was way creepier than that stupid movie. Any chance you'd wanna do all this again for Halloween?" Beast Boy propositioned cautiously.

"I'm afraid not."

…...

Jon's breathing was ragged as he lurched aside, the energized blade of Anastus' over-sized Nemesis halberd slicing through the air where he had just been. He backpedaled rapidly, sweeping Oath in a desperate block against Anastus' followup thrust.

"Pitiful," Anastus growled. The knight stepped inside Jon's guard and slammed his halberd's haft into the teen's chest. On a normal human, the blow would have caved in their chest and left them a miserable, dying mass. Instead, it threw Jon across the wooden sparring mat and knocked Oath from his hands. The former Titan clutched at his sternum, wheezing as his body tried to remember how to breathe.

Jon looked up from the floor to see the halberd's blade hovering above his face. "I yield." He managed, causing to Anastus to snort in disgust.

The Grey Knight walked away from the downed teen, swinging the halberd in long, practice arcs. It was a magnificent weapon; a long ebony haft as tall as Jon riddled with conducting wires that led up a long, single-edged blade atop it. "Weak and undisciplined, that is what you are." He had to speak loudly over the sparring room's din. Seventeen other knights were training in full arms and armor, all that remained of Anastus' command for the crusade. They were not the only Astartes support in the fleet, but they were the most suited to the foes they fought.

"You don't have to be an asshole about it," Jon coughed out. He got to his feet unsteadily, rubbing at his chest. "Plus, that mechanical monster of yours says I'm much stronger than you."

"Then why are you the one on the floor?"Anastus asked angrily. He turned to face Jon, his helmet hiding his face. "You have no skill, no discipline. You have vast amounts of power but you wield it like a juvie wields an autopistol. Wastefully."

"We have been fighting for hours, you know." Jon replied, looking down his borrowed tunic to inspect the massive bruise forming on his chest. The Titan and superhuman warrior had been fighting for the better part of three hours now and Jon ached all over from it.

"Weak," Anastus repeated. "Your body, for all it's biological and unseen improvements is soft and untempered. You have done nothing to master the power given to you. If you had been an aspirant to my chapter, you would have been lobotomized as a servitor."

"Alright, I get it." Jon summoned Oath back to his hand and readied himself for another bout. "I'm nothing but a spoiled child, blah, blah, blah. Let's go again, you big-boned bastard."

…...

"Beast Boy, where are you! Answer me!" Robin shouted into his communicator, laser bolts hammering away at his cover. He was pinned down in one of the upper floors of Titans Tower as wave after wave of Sladebots assaulted the building. When he received no response, he broke cover, weaving around the hail of fire and leaping down through a hole in the floor. He landed hard on a sladebot, slamming it into the floor, before taking out another two with a series of flying kicks. More robots followed and Robin once again had to flee for cover, laser bolts licking at his heels.

He dived through the doorway Cyborg and Starfire held, the two heroes covering their leader with blasts of sonic and starbolts.

"He's not responding," Robin snarled, furious at what was happening to the tower. The floor behind him shimmered and turned black as Raven phased through.

"And Terra's not in her room," she added as she joined her fellow teammates.

"Somebody wanna explain how two hundred armed robots got past _my_ security!" Cyborg yelled, blasting away with his sonic cannon. He shifted aside and let Starfire blaze away, opening a small hatch that connected to the security mainframe. As he tried to access it, electrical feedback surged through his mechanical arm and to his torso and brain, the only remaining flesh in his body. "Hnngh, gah! Can't even access the computer! We're locked out!" He shouted.

"They are too numerous to fight!" Starfire yelped, dodging back into cover as the incoming fire intensified. "What shall we do?"

Robin's eyes narrowed in determination behind his mask, "fight anyway. Titans! Go!" He shouted, leading the charge.

…...

This, this felt right.

Servitors, the lobotomized and technologically augmented bodies of criminals moved about him, placing the newly-forged war plate of power armor created for him onto his body. It was beautiful; gun-metal grey plates of admantium swathed in ablative ceramite covered his entire body, like a knight from long ago. His breastplate was worked with the image of a golden, two-headed eagle, majestic and terrible. He now knew the eagle as the Emperor's own heraldry, and he could not remember how he knew that or why it filled him with pride. His shoulder pads were worked in the shape of upward swept wings, while devotional litanies covered the armor in miniscule words of faith and devotion.

Armor linkage systems connected to the newly implanted ports located on his spine and Jon felt a brief moment of pain as the power armor synched with his body for the first time. It swiftly faded and was replaced with a swelling of might as the fiber bundles of musculature bunched and moved in time with his own movements. It felt like a second skin, the powered systems taking the weight off him completely and amplifying his strength and speed. They, along with every other system, drew power from the microfusion reactor stored in the armor's backpack. Through the linkage systems, Jon could feel the armor's reactor pulse thrum in time with his own heart; it was a strange feeling, not unlike the sensation he felt from Oath.

"How are you finding the war-plate?" asked a harsh, mechanical voice.

Jon turned, disrupting the simple-minded servitors and their tasks momentarily, to see Magos Bailmund enter the arming chamber on his tracked caterpillar mount. The first time Jon had laid eyes on the Magos, he had recoiled at the sight of the machine-man. Even for someone friends with Cyborg, the tech-priest's cybernetic replacements had seemed extreme, mostly because Balimund may have voluntarily given up his flesh...

The tech-priest's body was swathed in a heavy, red robe, with the tracked mount emerging from the bottom. His face, if it could called that, was a metal mask; with only one watery, blue eye and the surrounding eye socket and cheek still flesh. His other eye was mechanical, a baleful, green gem that gleamed out of the darkness beneath his hood. Instead of using his hands, which he kept folded in front of him at all times, Balimund relied upon his five mechadendrites for all physical tasks. They rose from his spine like mechanical, robotic tentacles and were surprisingly deft and precise.

"Hello, Bali." Jon said in greeting, knowing the machine-man actually enjoyed the abbreviated nickname for some reason. "It's fantastic! I don't think I've ever felt stronger, or faster." He flexed and stretched, luxuriating in the raw power he felt in his limbs; he was no stranger to unnatural strength but this combined with his newly-honed physique was invigorating.

"Superlative, I modified it myself. I was very surprised when Brother-Captain Anastus allowed one of his chapter's relics to be scaled down so much, but who can understand Astartes?" The Magos asked rhetorically. He had a funny way of using his flesh-voice, if it could even be called that. Most tech-priests of the Mechanicum, the religious order of mechanics and scientists that were the backbone of the Imperium, spoke only in bursts of binary among their fellows. When they deigned to actually converse with the 'organics', they spoke in clipped, robotic tones that barely above the stream of 0s and 1s they so often spouted. Magos Bailmund was different in the sense that he had actual idiosyncrasies in his speech patterns, and was capable of expressing joy and pride in his work.

Two of Bailmund's mechadendrites lifted up a elaborately worked bolter from a nearby weapon rack. A blunt, blocky weapon, its body was matte-black metal while its decorative outer casing shone with a brilliant red finish. While the bolter's calibre was scaled down to human proportions, it still was a massively destructive weapon which fired sickle clips of thirty self-propelled explosive bolts.

Jon took it from the Magos referentially, immediately aiming down the sights and checking its readiness. He hesitated momentarily as a niggling sensation in the back of his mind questioned at his ease with which he now wielded the firearm. He dismissed it with a shake of his head and maglocked the bolter to his thigh.

"It's strange... I get this weird feeling from the armor and bolter, like some sort of presence. It kind of feels like the connection I have with Oath, my sword I mean." Jon mused to the tech-priest.

"That is the machine-spirits you feel! Divine fragments of the Omnissiah that inhabit all his creations." Balimund explained, excitement tinging his voice as much as any emotion could bleed through. One of of his mehadendrites now offered Jon his armor's helm, which resembled superficially a medieval Barbuta helmet. "Now then. War calls, how does it find you?"

Jon accepted it gladly and placed it upon his head, the armor sealing into its own sealed environment a snap-hiss. Red eyes flickered alight and the voice that emerged, static heavy from his armor's broadcast speakers was no longer Jon's, member of the Teen Titans, but the 'Unknown Primarch's', warrior of the Imperium.

"I am ready."

…...

Terra, the young girl with too much power, let out a wordless shout of release, collapsing part of Slade's hideout onto the green wolf before it could reach her master. She heard a pained yelp and as the dust cleared, Beast Boy was shown to be trapped, his foot stuck underneath a large boulder.

"Very good, my dear." Slade nearly crooned, "Now, shall we finish him off?" The super villain raised a hand, compelling Terra to stride forward against her will. Beast Boy shifted back to human form, straining against the boulder but to no avail.

"Terra, no!" Beast Boy cried out as golden light built around Terra's left hand.

"He's too powerful," Terra confessed. "I can't stop him!"

"Yes, you can!" Beast Boy pleaded in desperation. "It's your power, not his. You can still control it, you can still do the right thing."

"It's too late..." Terra whispered, surrendering to the neural commands from Slade. She formed an enormous spike of rock above Beast Boy. It slowly inched towards the green Titan as Terra slowly relinquished control to her master.

"STOP!" Robin shouted, swinging in from the depths of the cave on his grappling hook.

"Strike, apprentice! Now!" Slade ordered savagely.

"Terra, no!"

"It'll be the last thing you ever do," threatened Raven as she emerged from the shadows behind Terra, her intention deadly as she focused her powers.

"I gave you an order!" Slade roared. "Do it!"

"Please, Terra, no!" Starfire pleaded, her eyes and fists glowing with green light.

"Don't do it, don't do it!"

"Listen to us Terra... We're not playing around... You're still our friend... You don't have to do this, we want to help." The voices of the other Titans combined and overlapped as Terra's world condensed to just her and Beast Boy, who looked up at her with no hatred, only pity and compassion.

"It's your life, Terra. Your choice, it's never too late to change." The changeling stated, accepting whatever she decided with a calm serenity.

"I'm sorry, Beast Boy. For everything I've done." Terra whispered to him and she made her choice.

…...

Ralkittan III, The purging of Dark Apostle Charon's Warband

Ralkittan III, that was where Jon first killed someone. Technically, he had taken another's life before, he had slew his fair share of demons and by his actions caused the death of the first girl he had ever loved, Traci. But demons were never truly killed on Earth, only banished back to their realm and Traci, while he would hold that guilt till the day he died, had been a victim of her own mistakes as much as his. No, Ralkitten III had been where he crossed the line.

He came out of the sky like a thunderbolt, dropping from a low-flying Grey Knights thunderhawk. The battle had been fully underway at this point, Battalions of imperial guardsmen and armored companies assaulting Charon's fanatical cult army and elite traitor Astartes warband. Charon had been a threat to the Imperium for thousands of years and was known across the sector for his crimes, the Butchering of Kalixes and the corruption of 58th Turean Janissaries the most notable.

Jon had landed heavily in the dusty melee, following the waypoint overlaid in his helm's HUD, when a shadowy figure had materialized out of the dust cloud. Swinging a screaming chainsword, the cultist had cried a prayer to dark gods and launched himself at Jon, who had just _reacted_. Swinging up the relic bolter; Jon had fired one shot, the bolt impacting in the muscle-bound man's chest before exploding a split-second later. The cultist's torso had erupted into a mass of meat and bone and with that, Jon had become a killer. It was such a small moment, bare seconds in a lifetime. But it would become one of the defining moments of Jon's life; a pebble in a pond rippling out forever more.

The count had risen to thirteen by the time Jon reached the Dark Apostle, eleven more cultists and two traitor 'space marines' falling to him. When he had found the leader of the heretics, the monster had been astride a fallen loyal Astartes, not a Grey Knight but a Black Templar, a particularly zealous chapter also part of the expedition.

Charon was a dark corruption of an Astartes, a massive brute clad in spiked, black plate. The monster had laughed at Jon when the paladin had appeared, his genhanced bulk dwarfing the teenager, even in his own suit of power armor, entirely. There may have been a taunt as Charon gestured with his enormous, spiked power mace, but at that point Jon had been too far gone in battle frenzy to care.

After a dozen or so blows, Charon was no longer laughing. At seventy-three, he was desperate; black ichor leaking from multiple wounds. By ninety-one, the Apostle was on his knees looking up at Jon through a ruined face. With the ninety-second blow; the head of the arch-traitor super soldier, 10,000 years old, murderer of millions and despoiler of worlds dropped away from its body in a geyser of blood, while the sixteen year old boy in scaled-down power armor lowered his blade.

Fourteen.

…...

Raven, her hood pulled up onto her head, made her way through the dark underbelly of Jump City quickly and quietly. It was a balmy summer night, though that was not why she was sweating in her cloak and leotard. She was nervous, fearful of what she was about to do but desperate enough to try it. The half-demon eventually found what she was looking for in the bottom level of an rundown, tiered parking building. It was a small glyph etched into the ground, barely noticeable to the mortal eye.

Casting one last look over her shoulder, she parted her cloak and drew a small, ornamental dagger from her belt. She made a small cut against the flesh of her left hand and dripped the blood onto the glyph, which began to glow an evil green.

"By the Lightbringer's laws; I summon you, Vulgrim." Raven whispered, kneeling down before the glyph and sheathing the dagger. A small form arose from the asphalt, spindly and red. It was skull-faced and emancipated, little more than skin and bones, but it would suffice. It was not a true summoning, what Raven had done, more of an painful way to establish a connection to the Earth-dwelling demon merchant, Vulgrim.

"Well, if it isn't my dearly beloved Raven!" The small figure crooned, reaching up to stroke a taloned hand across the half-demon's grey cheek. "What is causing you to call me at this delightful hour?"

"Vulgrim," Raven replied in a terse greeting. She hated doing this and she loathed the merchant but she had finally given into her desperation last week and now was the time to check on her results. "You know why I'm here."

"Ah... Yes, your little search job." Vulgrim began, and for a shadowy after-image of a demon, he looked somewhat apologetic. "Now beautiful, you know how much Vulgrim cares for all his customers-"

"Just tell me, you little wretch." Raven demanded with gritted teeth, already fearing the worst..

"Well... The truth is miss, I can't find your righteous friend anywhere," Vulgrim admitted, shrinking away from the half-demon incase she turned violent. When he next looked up at her, she was curled up on the concrete, resting her head on her knees. "Raven?"

The half-demon sniffed loudly, "how could you find no traces of him, at all? Where did you look?" Raven asked, her voice cracking slightly.

"You paid for the best, I gave the best, mistress," Vulgrim assured her. "My helpers found no trace of him in Hell, the Dreaming, Destiny's gardens, Dementia's realm, and every other elemental plane connected to this reality. I even had Heaven and Purgatory searched by an angel I got bent. That was expensive!" The demon merchant stressed theatrically before noticing Raven's down-cast face. "I don't know where your little friend went, but he isn't dead at least."

"Well, that's something at least." Raven replied, standing back up and wiping at her eyes. "Still doesn't help me though."

She turned to leave the parking garage but Vulgrim stopped her. "May I ask one question, mistress?"

Raven paused in departure and looked back, her face shrouded in darkness.

"The reason you search for this paladin... Is he part of some planned resistance against your birth prophecy?"

"It's not just not that... but yes." Raven admitted.

"Ah, I see..." Vulgrim turned pensive for a long moment. "I'll keep looking free of charge then. I like the third kingdom controlling Earth, more business opportunities. Though your father's machinations may never come to success, the Lords of Hell have begun to assault his realm night and day. They know his plan and fear it, well as much as we neverborn can feel fear."

"Do you think they possess even one-tenth the power needed to conquer father in his own realm?" Raven asked dismissively.

"Well... No..." Vulgrim conceded.

"Then I expect you to keep looking." Raven ordered coldly before leaving the summoned demon in the abandoned parking garage.

While the summer night was warm, Raven felt nothing but the cold numbness of defeat. She was truly alone, no one to turn too. It was less the pain of losing Jon, whom she had only known for a short two months, but the sadness because she realized something _could have been_ and never would be.

As for Trigon's plan, less than a year remained in her lifetime. A chilling prospect.

…...

AN: just a little sidebit, but Jon's power levels are supposed to be somewhat on the same level as Starfire's, just melee focused; that is how I am describing them in the story. Don't want people to think he's some overpowered sue

AN2: well that's the first chapter done of the short, split story telling. Hopefully it worked well and wasn't too annoying to follow. I picked the 40k universe because it would allow me to better explore a later theme that is the basis of this entire story, I don't want it to intersect much and the important bits will be explained in further chapters again. As always, comments and concerns are welcomed, especially any thoughts on the slight crossing over and style of story telling I'm doing for this chapter.


	7. Broken Mind

AN: Last chapter with anything 40k in it, hope it wasn't too much of a story killer. I think it is once again pretty obvious what episodes I pulled the excerpts from

Chapter 7: Back in the Saddle.

"Cyborg do you copy, Cyborg come in." The four remaining Titans gathered around the large flatscreen that dominated the common area, which displayed static before resolving into the humanized face of Cyborg.

"his isn't a good time guys." Cyborg warned in his dark room, "we've got a theory of mayhem test tomorrow and I'm totally gonna bomb.

"...Please tell me you're joking." Robin said, exasperation coloring his voice even through Cyborg's small, arm-mounted communicator.

"Yeah- uh. Look, sorry I haven't checked in. I've been learning their combat techniques, weapons, armor, and we had a dance-" Cyborg explained before Robin cut him off again.

"A dance!? Cyborg, you're there to find out what the Hive is planning, not learning to tango." Robin near shouted, Starfire and Raven both edging their faces on camera.

"I know!" Cyborg pleaded, trying to shush away Robin's objections. "This hasn't exactly been a tea party, ok? I just need a little more time."

"Or maybe it's time we went on the offensive..."

…...

_There is no such thing as innocence, only degrees of guilt_

It was somewhat strange, Jon thought, that a battleship, one of the most powerful class of warship in the Imperium's arsenal, would have such a large area dedicated to a library.

He was alone in the vast hold, a single glow-globe illuminating his bare, wooden table while barely giving a hint to the vast stacks of leather-bound books, datastacks, computers, and other exotic forms of data storage that surrounded him. Jon's own desk was piled high with tomes and datapads that he was being heavily 'suggested' too to read.

Tomes on warfare, tomes on strategy, tomes on philosophy; he devoured them all. Jon spent the majority of his time here now, when he was not training with the Astartes or inspected for corruption by Inquisitor Atia's leashed witches. The readings were full of little tidbits such as-

_An open mind is like a fortress with its gates unbarred and unguarded._

-And they were starting to get to Jon, sinking into a mind unsure of what and who he was. Though he was unaware of it, the conditioning was taking its toll; muddling his conviction and warping his views. To him, they were painful truths, that as much as he wanted to ignore, were beginning to make some sense.

Jon hated it. He wanted to go home, but he did not even know if he deserved to go there.

_The rewards of tolerance are treachery and betrayal._

…...

The night sky was an ugly green, lighting up Titans Tower and Jump City in its virulent shade. An immense, purple-black dragon hovered above the Tower, four-limbed with great, bat-wings. It clutched Raven in one of its taloned hands, holding her tightly enough that no matter how hard she struggled, she could not break free

"Oh, dear. You're not going to cry now, are you?" The dragon, Malchior, had a sadistic, taunting voice that slithered into Raven's head telepathically. "I know it hurts, but you'll just have to accept the truth. It's over. I got what I wanted and I don't need anymore."

"It's not over. Not. Yet." Raven replied, her voice dripping with hate.

Malachior laughed, a non-vocalized subsonic rumbling in her mind. "Sweet Raven, You can't hope to defeat me, I taught you everything you know!"

"You taught me spells, but I just learned a curse," Raven spat. A leather-bound book, encased in a bubble of dark energy emerged from the hole Malachior had torn through Titans Tower. The half demon grabbed it from out of the air.

"No!" Malachior roared, unleashing a blast of sorcerous fire. Raven shielded herself with a surge of dark energy, holding back the fire long enough for her to begin the incantation.

"Alduron Enlenthra Nalthos Sola Narisnor!" Raven cried triumphantly. The dark energy snaked its way up the fire stream and wreathing Malchior in black flame. The dragon howled in pain and terror, its body subsuming to the irresistible pull of the curse. It dissolved into a dark shadow that Raven absorbed with the tome before snapping it shut. Malchior was trapped once again.

She floated down to the roof dejectedly and fell to her knees, numb. Her cloak and leotard darkened back to their usual colors, a sign of Raven's own personal misery.

….

Alone in her room, she placed the book containing Malchior's essence in a simple, grey and black chest and locked it shut. Raven looked up as someone knocked on her door.

"Raven?" It was Beast Boy, "It's me, look, I'm sorry." The green Titan said quietly.

"For what? You're not the one who-"

"I'm sorry that he broke your heart.

"I know it was all a lie, but he was the second person that made me feel like I wasn't creepy. And don't tell I'm not

"Ok fine, you're way creepy, but that doesn't mean you have to stay locked in your room. You think you're alone but-

"Stop... Please, just go." Raven whispered suddenly, she was clamming up again instead of opening like she should. She sank to her knees and leaned against a bookcase. "I need to be alone.

"Well... alright, we're here if you need us."

Raven heard Beast Boy walk away and cried softly, realizing she had just driven away someone just trying to be her friend. She was alone again, the bright little moment that Malchior's lies had brought her snuffed out like a candle. The tears were warm and wet on her grey cheeks as she sank further into loneliness. For the second time, a potential positive connection for her was gone.

…...

Jon held the pitted, bronze surface of the idol. He... he knew that girl, that exotic and beautiful witch crying alone in a darkened room was someone he knew. A friend of his, from before he came to this hellhole. He just could not remember what her name was and it shamed him immensely.

He could remember names; Zatanna, Fate, Kyle, Guy, Robin... but not their faces. He could remember faces; the grey, heart-shaped framed by purple hair that haunted his dreams, the face of a close friend, youthful and red-haired, the face of his mother... But not their names...

It hurt him, the confusion. An acidic guilt that only drove him to greater heights in the war he fought.

…...

"Now Cyborg, don't fall to pieces. I have defeated you, but at least you won't be alone." Brother Blood mocked, his own body a fusion of flesh and red cybernetics. "Say hello to your new classmates."

A crippled torso, Cyborg could only shout a denial as both the Titans and Titans east appeared suspended in the cold, Steel City air.

"You should have accepted my first offer," Blood continued, levitating all that remained Cyborg with a red-tinged energy field. "I would have made a man out of you, I still could you know."

"You can take your offer and blow it out your ass-"

"Insolent child!" Blood yelled angrily. "Where is it Cyborg? I've combed through your blueprints, peeled back your armor, stripped off your machinery, but still you defy me!." The insane headmaster began hacking into Cyborg's remaining cybernetics sending painful feedback to the Titan's organic torso and head. "Somewhere in this contraption is the part that allows you to resist!"

Cyborg's eyes snapped open and the energy fiend shifted from red to a bright blue. "It's not in the circuitry is it? It's the machine that resists you. It's me." Cyborg declared triumphant, blasting Brother Blood away in a burst of feedback. "My spirit!"

The hive-bots, robots designed to imitate Cyborg's own design and power, flanking Blood begain to dissolve into their component parts and hovering over to repair Cyborg.

"That's the part you can't break!"

Now fully restored, Cyborg towered over Brother Blood, still surrounded by the blue aura. "I don't need you to make me a man, am I already am one!"

…...

Jon no longer remembered where he was from exactly. The past before his discovery on Skersia was an ocean of confused images, feelings, and people. He felt like he was drowning in an abyss of confusion; battles of astounding violence clashing with remembrances of a shapely, grey-skinned, young woman, complex strategies and blade work vying with memories of high school and friends he had there.

The one constant he had in his life now was the war. It called to him like a mistress of steel and fire, repulsive in its brute violence, yet seductive and black and white morality and sense of righteousness. It and its servants were an anchor in his troubled mind, the only clear thing he could focus on. The Idol of Kulkolth sat untouched in his small room now, an object that reminded him of some innocent past he could no longer attain.

He was stronger now, like a blade tempered in the hottest of forges. The crucible of battle had hammered both his body and powers into peak condition. The scars that cut across his body like faint fault lines were a mute testament to that. A warrior who had found his calling.

It had been little more than seven months since the battle for Skersia, and the last remnants of Jon the paladin, Jon the Teen Titan, were fading away.

…...

"What you have concealed, you shall become!" Slade proclaimed, tearing Raven's cloak from her back and revealing the demonic runes that covered her back. "You have no other choice." The resurrected super-villain and the Titan were atop Jump City's 'space-needle' skyscraper, the time-frozen city below them.

"No!" Raven screamed in defiance, her body wreathed in dark energy as she lashed out at Slade. He snatched her arm contemptuously, unimpressed at her feeble resistance.

"The message will be delievered," he said in a dangerous tone. "Your destiny shall be fulfilled. Tremendous power passed between Slade and Raven, a parting message from her demonic father. Raven's eyes blazed with red light as sections of her leotard were stripped away, revealing even more runes proclaiming doom.

The sky shifted from day to night and back again over and over, the sun and moon twisting through the sky. Raven's hair began to lengthen and grow as simulated time continued to pass. She fell to her knees, clutching herself tightly to see a ruined cityscape, hell had come to Jump City. The Titans Tower sprouted from a sea of lava. Dark avian shapes cawed among the destroyed city, perched upon the petrified forms of civilians and the Titans, corrupt forms dragging them down to the abyss.

"No!" Raven cried out, trying to deny the dreadful vision. The red sky loomed down impossibly upon her.

"Yes... Look at it. Drink it in." Slade said sadistically. "Behold the world you are destined to create. An enormous dark figure loomed in the distance, taller than any skyscraper.

"No! I won't do it! This is just a vision, this can't be real!" Raven whimpered, shaking her head in a vain attempt to banish the vision.

Slade grabbed her by the arm. "This is the future, your future. It began the day you were born and nothing can stop it. This will come to pass, I will make sure of it," Slade promised darkly. "You're going to destroy the world, Raven. It's written all over your face."

"NO!" Raven screamed, her eyes flashing white. Thunder boomed, as the world flashed black and white repeatedly. An enormous avian shape of dark energy manifested above her, screeching in defiance before evaporating. In a flash, the apocalyptic vision of Jump City was banished, replaced by the present, unfrozen time.

Raven fell limp and Slade let her fall off the tower. "We'll be in touch... Oh, and a happy birthday."

…...

Jon sucked in a huge mouthful of air, his eyes wide open as he let the Idol of Kulkoth dropped from his shaking hands. He remembered now, like a faint wind whispering through a maze. The images he had just seen raced through his mind, searing their way back to the forefront spitefully. They triggered a cascade in his mind, like a dam breaching its bulwarks in a torrent of memories.

His parents, long dead and away from his mistakes.

Traci, his first love and ultimate failure.

Zatanna, the powerful magician and his oldest, living friend.

His surviving friends from Catonsville High; Kyle, Guy, Jamie, Courtney.

Kid Flash, hyper-charged speedster and one of his first metahuman friend.

Dr. Fate, the avatar of Order and wise mentor.

And then the Titans; the stern, but welcoming Robin, who was successfully moving past Batman's legacy. The ambitious but cordial Cyborg, who despite his injuries, was becoming the great hero he was destined to be. The naïve, but benevolent Starfire, the alien powerhouse forging her legend on her adopted world. Finally, Raven, the quiet, withdrawn, half-demon beauty he had swore to help. The apocalypse maiden bringing the end of the world with every breath, the one he had just seen covered with demonic runes.

Jon was beginning to think he that he once cared for the dark beauty, everything was so confused in his mind. He dropped the idol and clutched at his head, trying to make sense of his disordered mind. What could make him forget his past so completely, draining him and then filling him up with the teachings of this reality.

"Goddamnit, who am I?" He muttered. His two halves were at war, the better past of becoming a superhero and the dark future of conflict he was being forced into...

Someone had addled his mind, trying to force him down the bloody road as the Imperium's champion...

An alarm began to wail, echoing through the tight corridors of the _Emperor's Spear _and his room. Jon looked up at the noise, surprised but aware of what it was. It was the call to battle, they were in orbit above the latest war zone. Soon, Anastus or Atia would call him on the intercom-

Wait... _Atia_...

Jon knew who had wrecked his mind.

…...

"I'm not afraid of you anymore." Raven stated angrily, her voicing echoing through the vast cavern built for a dark purpose.

"You might not fear me," Slade managed to say, "but look who's afraid of you." He melted away through the surrounding rock as Raven turned to see the her friends, the Titans regarding her fear.

"...Raven?" Beast Boy croaked weakly.

…

"The ancient order used the name Skath to protect the true identity of their master. We know him as Trigon." Raven explained, as in Trigon the Terrible, Trigon, one of the one Archfiends of Hell.

"Are you serious? That's who were up against?" Cyborg asked incredulously, the Titans now back in the tower's common area. "Oh, man."

"His cruelty is legendary, even on my world."

"So, what makes you go all glowy-in-the-darky?" Beast Boy asked, dealing with the shock by asking an unrelated and foolish question.

"It's a warning, it means Trigon is coming." Raven continued, "and the way he gets here is through me. I am not just a person, I'm a portal."

"But, Raven, why you?" Robin asked.

"Because Trigon... is my father..." Raven said, finally telling the other Titans what she had told Jon months ago. "Bad things are going to happen soon, really bad things." Raven stood and walked to the window-wall. "And its going to be my fault. I thought I could handle it this alone. I tried... but I was wrong."

Starfire placed a comforting harm on the other teenaged girl's shoulder, causing her to jump slightly. "For confiding in us, we are most humbled." The alien girl stated respectfully.

"I only have one question, how do we stop him?" Cyborg asked.

"We don't..."

"That doesn't mean we still can't try!" Beast Boy said cheerfully, which paled in the face of the coming threat.

….

"The prophecy has been revealed, the portal has accepted her fate." Slade reported, hunched over in a nebolous region that was situated between Earth and Hell.

"You serve me well, Slade. Continue to please me, and I shall honor our deal. I shall return what you have lost." A disembodied voice answer, deep and terrible.

"I am depending on it..."

…...

Jon, dressed in surplus infantry fatigues, stood alone in the _Emperor's Spear_'s observation bay, a glass blister adorning the underbelly of the grand warship. It provided a magnificent view, showcasing the empty star-filled vastness of space and the blue-green gem the fleet was orbiting.

The room was cold, mainly because of how thin the barrier to outer space was. While the temperature barely affected Jon, he still clutched the Idol of Kulkoth tightly and shivered occasionally, mostly from the feedback he received from the bronze idol periodically. After he had broken the conditioning Atia had placed on his mind, he had refused to let the idol leave his person at any time. Jon carried it everywhere, even into battle, and now refused any and all 'corruption' tests by the inquisitor.

Figurative midnight for the real Earth was drawing near, Jon could tell from the flashes his mind received from the idol. The other Titans were preparing defenses against the prophecy but Jon knew it would not be enough, Raven it seemed had given up entirely. He wanted to call out to her, to remind her of his promise and to let her know that he was coming to help her, but he could not. The link only worked one way.

His only hope was this last campaign, upon the world called Morulsian that so resembled Earth. The last remnants of the Chaos forces plaguing this subsector were down on that planet, led by a powerful sorcerer who Jon was certain was Sarnok, the madman who had caused his exile in the first place. Jon could feel the other half of the Idol of Kulkoth on Morulsian, the sensation akin to two powerful magnets being attracted to each other.

The bulkhead door behind him hissed open and a series of loud clunks and the mechanical whine of active power armor heralded Anastus' arrival. The brother-captain joined him at the viewing bay, his armor's humming making Jon's gums itch.

"Beautiful, don't you think?" Jon said with a gesture, indicating the world below them. "I never saw Earth from outer space but I've seen pictures of it; Morulsian's landmasses are all wrong but its pretty similar."

"I would not know, Holy Terra is a hive world now. Any water or vegetations is long since gone." Anastus replied in his deep voice.

"Damn shame..." Jon muttered. He held up his half of the idol, the bronze surface gleaming from the light of that system's sun. "I'm looking forward to going back to my own home."

Anastus stirred at looked over at Jon at that pronouncement but his helm hid all expression.

"I know what Atia has been doing to me, you don't have to play dumb. I know how she's been trying to get me to stay and be her figurehead, but I finally woke up recently." Jon admitted, staring at the idol. "Thanks to this."

Again Anastus said nothing, instead his dark-red eye lenses just stared at him.

"Did you know? What she was doing to my mind?" Jon asked him now, turning to regard the superhuman Astartes. His face was a mix of anger and disappointment.

"Of course, my squads were under her command. I did not condone her actions, but I was under orders." Anastus explained, not a hint of regret or apology in his voice, just the truth.

"Only following orders?' Jon sneered in disgust. He turned and began to walk out of the observation bay. "That's the problem with this godforsaken reality, everyone's always following orders." He triggered the bulkhead door, calling back one last time. "I'm going home, Anastus, and neither you or that old bitch are stopping me."

…...…...

The Titans, with Raven in the lead, were strolling contentedly through Jump City Park, a 900 acre public park that was the jewel of the city. The day was as warm and beautiful as any that could be found on the West Coast, small tufts of cloud waving through an aquamarine sky. They passed the central area where Maxariae had manifested nearly one year ago, causing Raven to shudder at the memory.

"Dude!" Beast Boy had stopped suddenly, his attention caught on something nestled in the grass.

Raven spun around in fear, expecting the worse... Only to see Beast Boy picking up a penny from the ground.

"Find a penny, pick it up, uh... Something, something, something... Good luck! It's my lucky day!" Beast Boy exclaimed happily, and giving a small victory dance.

"Anybody up for a game of extreme Stankball?" Cyborg asked the group, producing a pile of smelly laundry seemingly out of nowhere.

"Ya, sure!" Raven agreed happily, dumbfounding the Titans

"But you hate anything extreme, or stanky..." Beast Boy challenged, confused to say the least.

"Maybe I never gave it a chance?"

"Raven! Would you still have time to join me in the painting of the toenails later today?" Starfire asked animatedly, hovering just in front of her.

"Sounds like fun!" Raven acquiesced, which was extremely out of character for her.

"Ok Raven... What gives? Pancakes, pizza, stank ball, toenails?" Robin asked in a half joking, half cautious tone.

"Yeah, and she hasn't called me stupid all day. Did someone replace Raven with a Raven robot?"

Raven shifted a few feet back from the rest of the Titans, skimming the grass. "I just want everyone to have a nice day today." Raven deflected, sorrow building in her heart. There was a wrenching feeling in her stomach, the sensation a child would get when he knows punishment is awaiting, or the pain of knowing your fate and being unable to change it. "Come on, we have a lot to do before sunset."

As if in answer to her words, the sun began to dim in the sky as it was eclipsed suddenly and impossibly by the moon. The park became shrouded in a foreboding dark, and Raven spasmed in pain as long dormant power awoke within her.

"What's going on!" Beast Boy near squeaked in fright.

"Raven!"

Raven collapsed, demonic red runes appearing all over her body. The other Titans gathered around her.

"Why didn't you tell us? It's happening, isn't?" Robin asked, concern in his voice.

"Please Raven, today is the day? It is..." Starfire began.

"The end of the world..." Raven finished for her, tears welling in her eyes from shame and despair.

…...…...

The fighting inside the dark citadel was the fiercest Jon had ever known. Waves of cultists and traitor Astartes threw themselves at him and the Grey Knights strike-force, now numbering only fifteen including Anastus. The resistance did not stop them though, they blasted the Chaotic forces apart with bolter rounds or cut them down with their blades. Throughout the citadel, secondary teams of elite guardsmen and Astartes from other Chapters made diversionary assaults, as the main bulk of the crusade force battered down the gates and stormed the lower levels. The battle was won, what mattered was finding Sarnok.

They finally reached the huge doors to the sorcerer's inner sanctum after a grueling fight against a trio of terminator elite that left two Grey Knights dead or dying. While the apothecary tended to the gene-seed retrieval, Anastus and and a Justicar, which was equivalent to a sergeant, named Tulerus placed a bundle of melta charges to breach the armored bulk of the doorway.

The charges lit with an actinic flash and the doors melted into slag. Jon led the way, leaping over the molten metal and the heels of his power armor skidding across the black marble floor. He moved ahead of the remaining knights, as they had to wait for the metal to cool sufficiently to avoid injury.

The inner sanctum was dark, filled with a thick fog that smelled of ozone and filth. Jon advanced cautiously, his helmet's built-in sensors and visual enhancers struggling to pierce the gloom. There was a faint glow ahead and Jon headed for it, stepping over desiccated corpses and skeletons of unnatural creatures and mutated humans that littered the inner sanctum. Jon could hear the Grey Knights fan out and search the cavernous room as well, their clipped commands and responses broadcasting from his armor's built in communication systems.

The light resolved eventually resolved itself into a small throne, and atop it was a small, pitiful figure, swathed in a heavy black robe. The figure stirred feebly as Jon approached, the demon slayer magnetically locking his bolter to his armored thigh, confused.

A skeletal face emerged from the cloak and regarded the armored Jon with one cloudy eye. "So, at last you come for Sarnok," the figure said in a dry rasp.

…...…...

"Your friends cannot stop the inevitable, they are doomed." Two pairs of red eyes loomed out of the darkness of Raven's mind, its voice cajoling and sinister. "You really want their last day to end like this." A dark figure lifted Raven up in a taloned hand, and though it was a vision, she could feel the heat from the fires below. "How could you bear to watch them suffer?"

"Don't hurt them..."

"I am not the one hurting them, you are. You know what must be done..." Trigon's voice was dominating, forcing Raven to accept the truth.

"But, father, I don't want too." Raven pleaded, her own demonic heritage manifesting in two pairs of red slits for eyes.

"You cannot hide from your destiny." Trigon said with dread finality, banishing Raven from the soul communion.

…

Outside, the four remaining Titans waged a desperate last stand against Slade's flame demon hordes. While powerful individually, the Titans were outnumbered and overmatched. Robin dueled Slade himself, unleashing everything he could muster against the demonically-infused herald, only to see Slade recover from every attack.

The end came swiftly, the flame demons and Slade overpowering and restraining the Titans.

"Do you really want to spend your last day on Earth fighting?" Slade taunted as Robin struggled.

"This is not my last day!" Robin retorted, rage in his voice.

Slade moved to finish him, fire gathering in his hands, when a voice cried out above the patch of land before Titans Tower.

"Stop!" It was Raven floating down from the tower, her face pale but dead-set. The flame demons released the Titans at her command, obeying their master's daughter. "I will go with you," she told Slade. She had finally given in, despair overtaking her and leaving her bitter and broken.

"We won't let them take you!" Robin shouted, putting himself between Slade and Raven.

"You need to get back in the safety room," Starfire pleaded. "Please!"

"I can't hide from my destiny any longer..."

Raven, hating herself, let loose blasts of black lightning that caused the Titans to jerk and shake in pain as their senses were overwhelmed. She laid each of them down on the ground gently and, unknowingly to Slade and the demons, invested a portion of her power within each of them. "Goodbye, be safe," she whispered to her four best and only friends.

She walked over to join Slade, "let's go."

…...…...

The figure on the throne was a shrunken bag of skin and bones, a far cry from the portly sorcerer that had so destroyed Jon's future. His face was little more than skin stretched over a skull, a bull horn sprouting like some foul growth from his empty, left eye socket. Palsied hands shook as they tried to lift an ebon staff topped with a small piece of bronze.

Jon's heart skipped a beat when he recognized the Idol of Kulkoth's other half, but he resisted the urge to run forward. Instead he approached warily, training the bolter on Sarnok's withered form.

"What in the Emperor's name happened to you?" He asked, sickened by the transformation Sarnok had undergone. He had not known exactly what he would find in this final confrontation, maybe some brutal fight against impossible odds or a vindictive battle against the monster who had brought him here but not this, not some wretch who could barely stand. It all felt anti-climatic.

"What happened? what happened...They abused Sarnok, made us use the idol. Drained Sarnok's power away as sacrifice for dark gods. Ruined us..." Sarnok wheezed, his one eye unblinking and fixed on Jon's armored helm. "Sarnok just wanted to go home, and because of you, Sarnok never will. You ruined me little knight. This universe is dark and grim, no place for Sarnok or you..."

Jon was at a loss. Since he had been exiled to this god-forsaken reality, he had hated Sarnok, wanted to destroy him for his crimes in Jump City and the aid he had lent to the Archenemy. And now, now that Jon had found Sarnok, he felt nothing but pity. They were alike, the paladin and sorcerer. Both beings of power in an unknown reality, both abused and controlled by the factions that had taken them in.

"I... We can go back now with the Idol of Kulkoth completed. You deserve to die in your home realm at least," Jon said softly. Sarnok was a horrible person, entirely corrupt and a murderer, but he did not deserve this. No one did. He leaned down and dragged Sarnok up, the sorcerer little more than a bag of bones in his gauntleted hands.

"No...no...no, I don't leave here. I die here." Sarnok was mumbling, "I've seen this, it happens in three..."

"What are you saying?" Jon asked leaning forward, "I can't hear-."

There was a stuttering blast of gunfire and Jon flinched backwards as Sarnok flew threw the air. The sorcerer was thrown against the small throne and blasted apart by bolter rounds, little more than chunks of wet meat.

Jon spun around to find Anastus walking forward, smoke rising from his storm bolter's double barrels. "Primary threat neutralized," the Astartes radioed to the other knights and they soon gathered. "You had to know we would kill the warlock, Jon."

Jon looked over at the remnants of Sarnok and shook his head sadly without commenting. He reached down and pulled the idol's second half from Sarnok's staff. Taking his half from his belt, he held the two next to each other and they snapped together like magnets. There was a brief glow and the two halves fused together, such a small thing but one that filled Jon's heart with absolute joy.

"Is that it then?"

Anastus and the Grey Knights had surrounded Jon, massive giants in gunmetal grey armor with nemesis force-weapons held tightly. Jon surveyed them warily, not sure how the situation was going to play out. His right hand flexed by his relic bolter, ready to draw it in a moment's notice. There were thirteen left, post-human super-soldiers with blades that made a mockery of even his invulnerability. Jon did not particularly like his odds.

"Yes, I need to go. She needs me, Earth needs me." Jon near pleaded, clutching the idol close to his armored chest protectively. "What happens now?"

The thirteen space marines were inscrutable behind their helms and Jon began to feel a knot forming in his gut. He almost reached for his bolter when he saw Anastus move, who paused for a moment at the small spasm before disengaging his helmet's locks with a _snap-hiss_ and removing it. The marine's face was as it always was, a too-large, scarred block of granite, inscrutable as always. Storm-blue eyes regarded Jon for a long moment before the craggy face broke into an approximation of a good-natured smile.

"This is the part where I vox Inquisitor Atia that the 'Unknown Primarch' disappeared during the battle for the inner sanctum. It will be a shame, but I'm sure her propaganda spinners will be able to cope. I tire of her forcing me into dishonorable actions." Anastus declared, the other Grey Knights lowering their weapons and relaxing a fraction. "You will, however, keep to our own bargain?"

Jon nodded grimly, relieved but slightly worried about the bargain, whose details he had in a small datapad secured in his belt. Technically, once he arrived in his home reality, he could toss the datapad without a second thought, but no, that would not be honorable. Anastus was risking a large amount of trouble for his Chapter over Jon's freedom, he would honor the deal.

The paladin took of his helm now, clipping it his waist and offering Anastus his hand. The Astartes shook it, his armored paw dwarfing Jon's hand entirely. "It has been an honor, all of you." Jon said, addressing the remaining knights, who nodded respectfully.

Jon turned and raised the Idol of Kulkoth, focusing every ounce of his small grasp of magic on the idol. He thought of Earth, of its beaches and forests, of its towns and sprawling cities. His eyes clenched in concentration as he thought of Titans Tower and the rooftop promise he had made to Raven. Jon felt a small twinge from the idol and opened his eyes, happy but not surprised by the appearance of a door of black stone in the inner sanctum.

"Easy once you know how," Jon said under his breath. "Till I next see you, brothers." He waved a final farewell to the warriors he had fought and bled with before opening the black door and stepping through.

For the second time in a year, Jon was gone through a doorway.

…...…...…...…...

Deep below Jump City, Raven stood surrounded by the flame demons in the summoning chamber. While they obeyed her, she knew that if she made any attempt to leave, they would stop her and force her to finish the ritual. The eclipsed sun was visible in the sky and Raven felt nothing but cold despair, everything was coming to the end, and it was her fault.

"It is time," she said with dread finality. "The prophecy shall be fulfilled."

Behind her, there were sounds of battle as the Titans threw themselves at the flame demon hordes. Which rose up as one and restrained them effortlessly, far too many for them to fight. But they had tried to fight anyways, and that was why Raven loved them.

With a gesture, she banished the demons away from her best friends, letting them approach her. "It has already begun, and there is no stopping what is meant to be" She told them sadly, she was given up entirely, embers of hope quenched by a tide of defeatism.

"You're willing to give up on everything, all of because of some prophecy you heard as a child," Robin asked, unbelieving. "What if it's wrong?"

"Robin... I know what I know."

"I don't accept that, you can take control, you can make it not happened!" Robin countered, angry at the casual way Raven just accepted armageddon. Whether it was Bruce's tutelage or his own willpower, Robin would never give up, not till the bitter end.

"I knew my whole life that this day was going to come. I tried to control the dark side of me, I tried to do good things, to fight evil. I hoped that would somehow make up for the horrible things I'm destined to do," Raven explained. She had truly given up.

"But no one knows their destiny. There are things you can't possibly know!"

"There are some things I didn't know... Like how I would make such wonderful friends." Raven said softly, looking at her four friends with deep affection. "All I wanted was to make your last day perfect, instead you spent it worrying about me."

"That's what friends do-"

Raven shifted backwards away from Robin and the Titans. "And as my friends, you have to let me go." She created a vast wall of dark energy, separating the Titans from her. She began to walk up to the giant, stone hand that dominated the chamber, columns rising upwards for her ascent. Behind her the Titans attacked the dark energy force-field, but without avail. They could not break Raven's hold, not here where her powers were at their terminal peak. Raven continued her climb, footsteps towards the End.

She reached the stone hand's palm and assumed a meditative stance, hovering in the air. "The gem was born of evil's fire, the gem shall be his portal."

Below her, on the opposite side of the cavern from the Titans, a black stone doorway appeared and spat out a figure armored in grey and gold power armor. Vapor rose from Jon as he struggled to his feet, holding the Idol of Kulkoth in one hand. The demon slayer took everything in a moment's gasp, "Raven, NO!"

"He comes to claim, he comes to sire, the end of all things mortal." Raven chanted, not hearing Jon's shout. The red runes returned and her eyes shone with power as the power Trigon placed within her for this purpose was given its freedom at last. She screamed in pain as it burst forth. She had one last moment of sight, seeing the armored Jon hurtling at her before an eruption of power grew at her midriff and consumed her entirely. A solitary penny dropped from her hand as the power tossed Jon aside like a ragdoll.

The sphere condensed into a bright point of light before expanding into a fiery portal that crashed down and destroyed the stone hand. An gargantuan god-being burst forth from it, red-skinned and horned.

"The Earth is mine!" It bellowed in triumph, and ended the world.

…...…...…...…...

An: from now on it is an alternate version of season 4's finale and the entirety of season 5. Hope you enjoy it, feel free to leave any questions or comments.


	8. The End?

AN: I was surprised by how quickly this chapter was written. All events that happen in the season 4 finale but are not shown here, still happened.

Chapter 8: The End?

Mark IX Powered Armor (Aegis class) rebooting

-Reactor at 75%... 76%... 77%...

-Munitions at 62%

-WARNING! Chronometer Malfunctioning, local time set to 6:66

-WARNING! Armor plating degraded

Breach lower abdominal

Breach right vambrace

-WARNING! Large-scale daemonic infestation, unknown type

-Reactor at 84%... 85%...

At one hundred percent, power flared through the armor's systems, bringing the electrically-motivated fiber bundle musculature and hydraulics back online and taking their weight off Jon's body. The demon slayer rose from the pile of rubble like a reborn god, his silver-gold armor tarnished and dented. Blood stained the inside of his helm, tinging the green HUD red and obscuring his vision. He reached up, hands shaking, and disengaged the helmet's seals with a _snap-hiss. _Jon staggered out of the rock pile, his vision blurred, and stowed his helm and the Idol of Kulkoth, which was scorched black from the power it had absorbed protecting him, on his belt.

Before him lay the twisted remains of Earth after the end. The once gleaming skyscrapers of glass and steel had become stripped away to petrified skeletons of dark, igneous rock. The sky was blood-red, darkened by soot and ash that caught in Jon's throat and made him caught. Sulfurous clouds drifted in the shattered streets as fires burned from cracks in the ground. It was the most complete and utter version of Hell Jon could imagine, and _this was supposed to be Earth._

He had failed, Jon thought to himself. This was it, this was the end. All of his work trying to make it home and he had only succeeded in seeing the Earth destroyed. All those people, billions of them. The Justice League and the other superheroes on Earth must have been petrified with the normal civilians, the only reason he had survived was the Idol, Jon was sure of it. The utter hopelessness of it all was a crushing weight and he fell to his knees in despair, this was the end.

He heard a chorus of demonic howls in the distance and a black rage grew within his heart. Oath appeared with a flash, the blade glowing brightly with Jon's righteous anger. He would go and find what foul horrors populated this destroyed world and he would strike them down, he would fight until his body was no more. Before Jon could head for the distant flame demons, there was piercing _caw _behind him that stalled his suicidal crusade in its infancy.

Jon spun around, bolter raised, to see a lone raven perched on a stone car, regarding him beadily with its right eye. It was small and pure white and innocuous amongst the blasted remains of Jump City. Jon lowered his weapon as it squawked again, almost happily at him. He approached it warily, unsure what to make of it. Maglocking the bolter to his thigh, he held out an armored hand to the bird cautiously. It chirped and pecked at the offending hand, causing Jon to recoil in pain as its beak somehow ignored the layers of ceramite and adamantium entirely and pricked his flesh.

"Oh! Damnit, how in the hell..." Jon wondered, staring at the bird in confusion. It _cawed _twice more, as if amused, and took off down the street. "Hey! Come back!" Jon shouted, chasing after it. It landed on a crumpled streetlight and squawked loudly at him.

Jon paused for a moment as he heard a distant rumble from the west, near the bay and Titans Tower. He could make out the high-pitched whine of starbolts and sizable amount of explosions. As he began to set out west, the raven _cawed _again twice, bobbing up and down on the streetlight urgently. Jon was conflicted, part of him wanted to aid what he hoped was his former Titan teammates while the other needed to see Raven once again. After a moment's hesitation, Jon headed back towards the white raven, deciding that the Titans could handle themselves. Raven was their best chance of fixing this.

The bird took off again and Jon followed it, skimming the street full of petrified cars and citizens.

…...

"Trigon! Stand up and fight!" Robin shouted as the other Titans joined him, they were standing on the island of stone in a sea of lava. The heat was tremendous but Robin ignored the sweat prickling down his back.

"Insignificant insects..." Trigon muttered, sitting upon a throne fashioned from the petrified remnants of Titans Tower, the ultimate insult to the team. He was larger than life, a moving skyscraper of red demon flesh, the very manifestation of evil. Four eyes sat in a brutish face that was topped by two, upward-curving antlers of ivory bigger than a city bus. His taloned hands were tipped with claws longer than Cyborg was tall and the hooves upon his feet could crush the tiny recipe of rock the Titans stood upon.

"I think it's time to hit him hard." Robin declared, angry at being ignored so out of hand by the demon lord.

"You're positive we're not going to accidently microwave our brains?" Beast Boy asked cautiously.

"I have used Raven's powers once before, they are controlled by emotion. The more we feel, the more energy is released." Starfire explained to the other Titans, referring to the small gift of power Raven had gifted to each of them.

"In other words, get angry!"

They linked hands, creating a circuit for the dark energy amongst themselves. Black lightning crackled before them as inexperienced minds sought to wield power they had no comprehension of. The four Titans rose up into the air, buoyed by the power.

"Azarath. _Metrion_. _**ZINTHOS**_." They chanted in unison, unleashing a spectacular display of dark energy that twisted through like a snake impacted into Trigon's chest. The demon lord roared in agony at the beam's power but like a spark it burnt out quickly, leaving Trigon's body intact.

"You may think it wise to attack me while I gather my strength, but as you can see, not even a farewell gift from my daughter can help you," Trigon taunted. "Begone."

Red lightning erupted from the demon's eyes warping through the air and blasting the Titans away like rag dolls. Raven's leftover power was the only thing that saved from incineration as they flew over the city and crashed down into the summoning chamber where it all had started.

"Guess that was no angry enough." Cyborg considered, picking himself up from the ground.

"Of all the places to crash and burn, why'd it have to be here?" Beast Boy said sadly.

"Please, I wish to leave," Starfire pleaded.

"And go where? The whole world is toast. And the only person who'd know what to do is-" Cyborg replied angrily before cutting off momentarily. "...We could really use her help right now."

"I know what we saw, but I still can't believe it. It just doesn't feel like Raven's really gone..." Robin mused, half to himself

"That's because she isn't." A voice answered him, and Slade walked out from the shadows.

…...

The white raven had led Jon deep into the Earth's depths, a trail that had been forged when Trigon's realm had been connected to humanity's plane of existence. The journey was akin to Dante's descent down into Hell, long and arduous. Many times Jon had to fight his way through ambushes of flame demons or navigate rivers of lava and dangerous rocky pathways.

His avian companion had disappeared after he had past through a giant set of double doors marked by the rune of Skath, but Jon was able to continue on alone. He could feel a presence out in the vast, indefinite plains of the underworld and he focused on it.

There was a thought in his mind; a dark, poisonous one that ate away at his conviction. It was a remnant of the time he had spent fighting for the Imperium, born of its hardline stance against all evil and corruption. The thought was this, _what if you had done your duty when you first learned of Raven's heritage.._. It hurt him because, deep down, Jon was worried it might be right.

So now he traveled through the ever-shifting realm between Earth and Hell and wondered whether one innocent life had been worth the end of all things.

…...

"What's a matter, Slade? Giving up already?" Robin taunted, as Beast Boy shifted from a triceratops back to his human form.

Slade glared up at them from the ground, seemingly drained of his earlier demonic power. "Sorry to disappoint you Robin, but I'm not here to fight. I'm here to help."

"We don't need your help!" Beast Boy growled at him.

"Yes, you seem to have everything under control," Slade replied drily. "Raven can still be saved."

Starfire howled in rage and seized the super-villain, slamming him into a granite wall. "You will not dishonor our friend with your trickery!"

"Whatever your selling, we're not buying."

"Think of me what you will, but what Trigon did, even I wouldn't wish on this world." Slade countered.

"It's a little for I'm sorry," Cyborg said.

"You mistake my generosity for regrets, Cyborg. I only offer my assistance because it suits me."

"But we saw Raven become the portal." Starfire remarked desperately. She released Slade and backed off. "She was destroyed."

"Raven has fulfilled the prophecy of her birth, that part of her existence is complete, but another part still remains. For the moment." Slade explained to the four remaining Titans.

"Why are you doing this? What's in it for you?" Robin demanded.

"My reasons are my own," Slade said evasively. "Do you want your friend back or not?"

"Just tell us where she is and we'll take it from there."

"There will be no we. This is a journey only one of you may take." Slade said, amused by their posturing.

"No deal! She's our friend! All of us are going," Beast Boy said angrily.

"Than your friend is doomed to oblivion," Slade replied derisively. "You fail to realize Trigon is all seeing, his mind can be at any place, at anytime. For us to succeed, Trigon's attention must be occupied."

"And how do you expect them to do that?" Cyborg countered. "We already tried fighting him, look where that got us."

"It's the end of the world. Did you think it would be easy?" Slade said with a hint of mirth in his tone. "I don't expect you to win, I don't even expect you to live, only that you endure."

"I'll go with you..."

"Robin, no!"

"-If there's even the slightest chance to save Raven... What choice do we have?" Robin stated.

"The journey to this world has taken much of Trigon's power," Slade explained. He held out a small golden ring, lined with red runes, and Starfire took it. "With this, you might be able to survive. It's a ring of Aesir, forged by the same order that banished Trigon. I know from experience that it works." It was a surprisingly kind gesture from a former foe, he had given them the chance to survive.

"I know you can do it," Robin said, fierce pride coloring his words. He hugged Starfire tightly for a long moment.

"It may get ugly but don't worry, we'll keep him busy." Cyborg asserted with a sense of bravado.

"Yeah! Just wait till Trigon gets slapped with my patented wet willy maneuver!"

"He won't know what him," Robin said with a small smile.

"Your goodbyes are really quite touching, but we have work to do," Slade jeered.

Robin and Starfire shared one last look, long suppressed feelings rising to the fore before...

"Robin? Now." Leaving Starfire unable to express herself.

Slade and Robin began the journey downward. The boy wonder turned back one last time, "I'll bring her back, I promise."

…...

Time seemed to not pass at all in the underground hell. Robin continued on alone, having split from Slade some hours ago. The heat was getting to him now, his normal human body suffering a tremendous water debt and he felt his strength being sapped by the evil of this realm. He was walking along a dark pathway, flanked by fire-topped pillars of skulls with vast spears of rock stretching out in the distance. The sky above, and the sheer impossibility of it made Robin want to scream. His goal was a ruined chapel in the distance, a spot on the horizon that never seemed to come any closer. Still he pressed on, his iron spirit driving him when both his mind and body rebelled against his surroundings.

Robin stopped suddenly and spun around, slicing through a flame demon that had been sneaking up behind him with his wingding. "You guys again?" Robin said bravely, all traces of his early fatigue vanishing. More flame demons morphed out of the nearby skull pillars, surrounding him but he did not care.

He combined two of his wingdings into a slender sword and tore into them, venting his justifiable rage upon their fiery forms. Too late, he realized there were far more than he first thought. They surrounded him, tendrils of fire licking out and tossing him to the ground. Two flame demons restrained him while another raised up a spear of flame to-

There was a roar, like the passing of a jet engine, and the flame demon about to perform the coup de grace to Robin shivered as it was struck by something before exploding spectacularly. The other two demons holding Robin were hit as well, bursting apart a nanosecond after. A lightning bolt came out of the hazy not-sky, streaking through the air and crashing down among the flame demons in a blinding burst of light and kinetic force that tossed the demons and Robin aside.

There was a stuttering burst of gunfire from the impact crater, and the surviving flame demons milled in confusion as they were blasted apart. A bulky, armored silhouette emerged from the dust-filled crater, wielding an over-sized, ornate rifle that juddered and spat round after round into the flame demons. The figure was wearing fully-enclosed, polished grey armor. It was heavily detailed with a golden, two-headed eagle detailed the armor's breastplate, while upswept wings formed the armor's shoulder pads and a forbidding, gothic completed the ensemble.

The rifle clicked dry and the figure tossed it aside as the last three flame demons leapt forward, screeching in mindless rage. As if in response to their cries, a silver blade,wreathed with crackling arcs of energy, leapt into the stranger's hands. It was at least four feet long, with ripples of cyan and gold, and unstoppable; annihilating the first demon before licking out and bisecting the second. The final demon managed to strike the warrior, leaving a small scorch mark upon the polished grey plate before the stranger's fist struck out like a viper and crushed the flame demon's head to ashes.

There was an eerie silence as the last demon fell. Robin picked himself up off the ground, his aches and fatigue returning as the armored knight calmly picked up his rifle. He reloaded it quickly and smoothly before clipping it to his thigh, his sword having already vanished into thin air. The stranger bent down and picked up Robin's slender sword, it looked rather small in the stranger's armored grip, and tossed it back to the Titan

"That was some display," Robin said cautiously, catching his wingding-sword. "Who are you? How did you survive Trigon's magic?" He did not know who or what the newcomer was or how he came to be here. He had to be somewhat powerful, considering he had managed to survive Trigon's transformation of Earth and the subsequent infestation of flame demons. Now that the fighting had stopped, Robin could see the stranger was not unmarked by the armageddon. The grey armor was dented and pierced in several places and covered in plenty of scorched marks.

The figure paused, as if hurt Robin did not know him. "I was about to yell at you bird-brain, but then I realize you wouldn't recognize me under all this armor." The warrior said, static creeping into his words form a damaged speaker and rendering the voice unrecognizable. He reached up and disengaged the locks on his helm with a _snap-hiss_, revealing the slightly scarred, but still striking face, topped with dark-brown hair, of Jon, the long-lost Titan. "Good to see you're still alive, old friend."

…...

"So this past year you were gone, you were in another reality? Fighting for some galactic empire?" Robin asked Jon as they continued their journey to the ruined chapel in the distance. Jon had began telling the boy wonder some of the details of his exile, talking only in broad strokes and avoiding some of the more problematic details; like his near-brainwashing for one.

"Yup, that idol dumped me out in some crap hole of a reality. I needed to repair the damn thing before I could make it back, but sometimes if I focused on my half, I could see what was happening in Jump City." Jon explained, "that's why I tried my hardest to get back before," he gestured around to the impossible Hell around them, "all this happened."

"I see... And you gained that armor there? Was it truly that bad of a reality?" Robin continued.

"It was bad, Robin, real bad..." Jon answered, his eyes fixing on a point in the distance. "Let's just say I'm glad to be back, even if its just for the end of the world."

"It's good to have you back, with your powers and skill set and Raven back, we'll have a chance to fix this." Robin said confidently, clapping Jon on his armored back. The indomitable willpower Robin had been born with rising back to the fore.

"You never give up do you?" Jon laughed despite their surroundings.

"No. I don't expect you too now either. Sounds like you went through hell and back to get home, now is not the time to surrender." Robin scolded.

"I'm starting to remember why you were the leader," Jon replied with a grin. It was good, despite their surroundings, to be facing this apocalypse with a friend.

They finally reached the destroyed church, its pillars reaching for the sky like an opened ribcage. They moved in quietly, not sure what they would find. The church was littered with ebony pews, most smashed to tinder by toppled archways and the partially collapsed roof.

"My auspex has a contact but its faint, can't get a lock." Jon whispered to Robin, carefully clearing each nook with his bolter tight against his right shoulder.

"What's an auspex?..." Robin whispered back, following behind him.

"Oh, uh, sorry. Slipped back into Imperial jargon, it's a scanner basically." Jon answered, chagrined at his lapse back into a world he was trying to leave behind.

There was a faint skittering sound and Jon leapt forwards, his helm's HUD painting a small heat blob in towards the back of the church. The paladin clipped the bolter to his thigh and hurried after the contact, leaving Robin behind, shouting a question.

Jon vaulted over a collapsed pillar and caught sight of a diminutive figure trying to scurry away. Reaching forward, he snatched at the figure's cloak and sending it tumbling to the ground. Catching up finally, he lifted up the cloak, he thought it was originally white in color but it was hard to tell under all that soot, and found-

A tiny, child aged, Raven.

"Who... Who are you?" the de-aged Raven whimpered, cowering in terror justifiably in the shadow of Jon's armor.

"It's ok, we're here to take you back." Jon answered softly, making sure not to scare the childish figure as Robin joined, the Titan just as confused by Raven's appearance as Jon was. The child-Raven moved to flee but Jon's gauntlet shot out and caught her, gently but firmly. "Hold on there little miss, we came a long way to get you."

"Let me go! I don't know you! You're a bad man!" Child-Raven squealed, trying to escape on's grip.

"Hey, calm down. It's me." Jon reached up and managed to take his helm of one-handed. His face was tight with sorrow and some fear. "It's me Raven, don't you remember me?"

"Jon?..."

…...

Starfire, Beast Boy, and Cyborg fled through Jump City's twisted remainss, flying above the barren necropolis at breakneck speed. Behind them, a horde of flame of demons, flocking together like a warm of locusts.

"Screech all you want, we're not going down without a fight!" Cyborg bellow, blasting away from his perch atop pterodactyl-Beast Boy. He put down a half-dozen with his sonic cannon before flanking demons dove in knocked Starfire and Beast Boy out of the sky like pigeons with their wings clipped.

"We're going down!" Beast Boy cried out as the three Titans slammed down painfully on the bare asphalt. The flame demons rushed towards before a hail of gunfire and several explosions rocked the main group and drove them away.

"Robin!" Starfire shouted in glee as she saw Robin standing triumphantly with child-Raven on a rocky perch.

"Dude, you're alive"! Beast Boy added on as the three Titans rushed towards their leader.

"Uh, who is that?" Cyborg asked, flattering as he noticed Jon's armored form calmly reloading his bolter.

…...

Starfire, despite their surroundings and rather grim situation, squealed in joy when Jon first took off his helm and lifted all 600 pounds of his armored bulk in a fierce bear-hug.

"Good to see you too, Starfire." Jon managed to say, crush warnings flaring in his helm as the Tamarean's strength threatened to rupture his power armor. The teenaged alien put him down so he could exchange a one-armed grip hug with Cyborg, who he matched in height and stature while within the power armor, and a fist-bump with Beast Boy that left the green shapeshifter shaking his hand in pain.

"Err, sorry about that, Beast Boy." Jon apologized as Beast Boy winced in pain.

"Forget it, dude you're back!" Beast Boy near yelled excitedly. "Nice duds," he complimented as he took in Jon's ornate power armor.

"Oh man, I would love to take that apart and see how it ticks." Cyborg said, examining the compact fusion reactor in Jon's backpack.

"Let's focus on saving the world first guys," Jon laughed.

Cyborg looked over to the small nook of rock child-Raven was hiding,"So her powers are gone? She really can't help us?"

"At least we still got that ring of Aesir thingy so Trigon can't-"

Starfire held out her and dropped the shattered remnants of the ring onto the ground.

"-oh, crud."

"This is it. One final attack, him or us. All or nothing" Robin said , dread fatalism creeping into his words. Four teenagers against a demigod, it was the stuff of legends.

The now four other Titans nodded in agreement, accepting the eventual fate implied by Robin.

"A brotherhood of warriors," Jon began suddenly, the other Titans looking around to him, "that I fought alongside while I was away had a custom for times like this. Clasping hands, they would each swear that they would stand until the final day dawned. 'Until the end', they would say. It was their most binding oath, said only between those who knew they will never see another war. When a Templar knows he will die, he gives his promise that he will stand with honor until he can no longer stand at all."

Jon held out his armored hand in the middle of the Titans' small circle, "I don't think there's anyone else in this reality or the another I rather make that vow with." The other Titans put their own hands with Jon's.

"Until the end then," Beast Boy said quietly.

Jon smiled, his face melancholic. "Until the end, my friends."

He turned away from the Titans and knelt down besides the diminutive Raven. "I know that you've given up on us," he said quietly. "I know you think we can't win, hell I'm not sure what's going to happen next. But you have to remember, this is your story Raven. I know it seems hopeless, but I believe in you, I believe that you can do good."

Jon stood back up, giving her a small wink before placing his helmet back on. "And don't forget, no matter what happens, I did manage to keep my promise."

An immense shadow fell over the Titans as Trigon's enormous hand reached down and plucked the boulder they were hiding behind. "What strange vermin cower beneath my rocks?" The demon lord gloated, his voice low and resonant like the rumble of thunder.

"NO!" Robin yelled, drawing his bo staff as he and the five other Titans leapt forwards to attack the embodiment of evil.

"I have endured your existence long enough." Trigon bellowed, red light leaping from his four eyes and encasing the five Titans in a sphere of pain. Raven could only watched as her friends screamed in agony.

"Your world is ended, your time is-"

There was a roar of rage as Slade vaulted through the air, swinging a malicious-looking battle-ax as tall as he was. The axe sliced threw Trigon's left antler, causing the great demon lord to stagger back in pain. The antler, as large as a car dropped from the sky and nearly crushed Slade when it landed.

"TITANS! GO!"

The five Titans charged forth to do battle with a being of unlimited power.

…...

Trigon bellowed in rage at their defiance, hurling the boulder he held with the force of a meteorite, scattering Cyborg and Robin. Starfire buzzed around the demon lord's head and pelted it with starbolts, she was a wasp against a elephant. Trigon chased her with massive beams of red light, allowing Beast Boy to clamp down on one of his ears with the 12,800 pound bite of a Tyrannosaurs Rex. Trigon roared in pain and snatched the green dinosaur, who was no more than a toy in his enormous hand.

Cyborg saved Beast Boy with a blast of sonic energy as Jon steadily advanced, firing on full auto. Each bolt round was filled with silver-shards and heavily impregnated with blessed, anti-demonic energy. They blew fist-sized in Trigon's body that wept black ichor.

As Trigon turned to confront the heroes below, Robin leapt form a nearby building, tossing a handful of discs that burst into frozen clouds of vapor. Trigon's four eyes were covered by a thick sheet if ice, blocking out his eye-beams. Starfire zoomed past, catching Robin as he fell back to earth.

Trigon howled as eyes iced up, staggering backward as the rest of the Titans continued to pour on the attack.

"I don't believe it..." child-Raven muttered to herself as she watched from afar.

Jon launched off the ground with a power-assisted leap and stabbed Oath deep into Trigon's chest; the sword, forged for this express purpose, sank in all the way to its winged cross-guard. Jon stabbed again and again, leaving long, lasting wounds as a volley of missiles from Cyborg blasted in Trigon's face and shattering the ice there.

"...They're hurting him."

Trigon fell to his knees as Slade approached with his demonic axe. "For the record, I'm nobody's servant," he said calmly before sending the axe spinning through the air and slicing away Trigon's remaining antler. The demon lord staggered all the way back to the bay of lava and for one bright moment, the Titans and Slade dared to hope they had won.

"ENOUGH!" A red beam of light blasted Slade aside, Trigon swatting him as easily as one swats a fly.

"No!"

Trigon's red beams played across the Titans, hammering them into the ground with its kinetic force. Jon managed one last burst of bolter-fire before he fell beneath the light.

When the smoke cleared, child-Raven ran forward to see her friends crumpled and defeated. Despair filled her as she knelt besides Jon's unconscious form.

"Get up! Please, get up!" She begged as Trigon's massive footfalls grew closer and closer.

"Farewell, dear daughter." Trigon said, looming above Raven. Red light grew in his eyes and the beams slashed downwards to annihilate his child. When the flash cleared, Raven was still alive, rotected by a shimmering sphere of white light that protected her and the Titans.

"How?" Raven asked, amazed at the manifestation of her powers.

"You may have retained some trace of my power, but you are still no threat to me, little girl. I am your creator, your master. You exist only to serve me. You survive only because I allow it. What hope could a mere child of defeating her all-powerful father?!" Trigon roared.

Child-Raven bowed her head momentarily, before looking back up in defiance, white power blazing in her eyes. "You may have created me," she began as the power grew into a brilliant flash. When the light had dissipated, Raven stood again as a young woman. White light swirled around her as her powers flared with her anger. "But you were never my father." She unlashed a searing blast of light, blasting Trigon backwards and stealing away some of his form.

The Titans managed to look up weakly from the ground as Raven strode forth purposefully, advancing on her terrible father.

"Wretched, insignificant- graahhh!"

"Fathers are kind. Fathers protect you! Fathers raise you!" Raven said grimly, punctuating each barb with a blast of white light, leaving Trigon encased in white lightning.

"I was raised by the monks of Azarath. I was protected by my friends." Raven continued, her friends gathering around her as Trigon howled. "They are my family, this is my home, and you are not welcome here!" She rose into the air on a wave of power.

"Azarath. _Metrion_. _**ZINTHOS**_!"

For a brief moment, the Titans could see a shining, white raven enveloping the defeated demon lord before a white flash stole it all away. When the light cleared, everything was back to normal, surrounding civilians blinking in confusion at the faintest impression that something monumental had happened. The world was saved.

Raven descended back to the street like an angel, long, purple hair billowing out like a shroud.

"Raven, that was-"

"Unbelievable."

Jon was struggling to rise from the ground, electrical feedback from his half-ruined armor singing along the connection ports and hurting his spine. Raven ran forward to help him, using her empathy to take some of the painful feedback away.

"No it wasn't." Raven said happily as she helped Jon to his feet. "All of you believed in me." She hugged Jon's armored torso, "you came back, like you promised." Raven whispered to Jon alone, pure happiness in her heart.

Jon managed a agonized smile, "yeah well, told you it'd work out."

"Ok, you're freaking me out here! The white robe and smile are weird enough, but hugs?!" Beast Boy asked, extremely confused. "Are you still you?"

"Blue is still my favorite color, and don't get used to the smile, cause you're still not funny." Raven answered disdainfully.

"Huh?" Beast Boy Jumped forward and embraced her in a bear-hug. "Raven!"

"Quit it."

…...

"Alright, yall! Four-eyes is history! His ghoulies are gone, and we just saved the whole, dang universe!" Cyborg said gleefully before pulling on a chef's hat. "Who wants waffles?"

"Oh yes, me please!" Starfire waved her hand excitedly. "I shall consume them with gravy and the butter of peanuts."

"And I've got enough tofu bacon for everyone who wants it!" Beast Boy declared happily, holding up a small plate of spongy-looking bacon.

"So... just enough for you?"

"Exactly!"

Starfire snatched the faux-bacon from the plate, and holding it up like a headdress of bean product. "Observe, I am a ruhrthian zopgar!" She said giggling. She looked up to see Cyborg's and Beast Boy's confused expressions. "On my planet, this is hilarious."

Cyborg and Beast Boy exchanged a look before laughing uproariously, as Starfire made fake grunting noises in imitation of the alien beast.

Far below the festivities, Jon was alone in the tower's vault, where Robin had once kept the Red-X suit. He was dressed only in a loose body glove and pants, holes along the spine of the close fitting body glove to allow his armor to link with his spinal connection ports. He was putting the power armor away in the vault, grimacing at the damage it had suffered and knowing it's machine spirit would be displeased. He had no means to repair it for now, and while functional, Jon was loathe to use it again. It felt like a reminder of the reality he had only yesterday been a part of.

The relic bolter and his remaining ammo for it went as well, he knew Robin would not let him take such a murderously efficient weapon along for superhero duties. While Jon was overjoyed to be back, something felt a little off, as if he could not believe he was truly back on Earth. It just felt so sudden a transition.

"There you are."

Jon looked back to see Raven emerging from a portal of dark energy. "Found me," he said with a half-smile. "Sorry, just putting stuff away." He triggered the vault, and the massive door swung closed.

"It's fine- What on Earth happened to your back?" Raven asked, startled by the trio of metallic ports implanted there.

Jon turned to face her sheepishly, hiding the connection ports. "It's neural linkage ports, so I can use the armor's complete systems."

"But your back!"

Jon hung his head, "it's something I had to do Raven, to survive. I had to do a lot of things in that hellhole, things I'm not proud of."

"I don't get it. Before you went away, I could read your emotions like everyone else, but now... you're like a blank slate, everything hidden." Raven said sadly, her hand rising up to touch Jon's shoulder but instead faltering. "What happened to you."

Jon grimaced before pulling her into a warm embrace on impulse. The slightly-shorted Titan stiffened slightly, surprised, before relaxing into the hug. They luxuriated at the pleasant feeling of a warm body against their own. "Bad things, Raven, but I made it through alive."

"I've missed you, Jon. Don't ever go through an unstable space-time portal again." Raven muttered. She was pretty sure this was the longest hug she had ever had. "I know you probably won't want to talk about what happened to you, that's ok. Some secrets don't need to be shared."

"Thanks, Rae." Jon said appreciatively as the hug ended. "I'm glad to be home."

Raven stepped back and raised an eyebrow. "Someone's good though, mister muscle man."

Jon managed a grin, "speak for yourself, miss. You look great." It was a long time since he had registered anything approaching a well-made, sexy, female body. A long time since he had registered anything that was not for battle.

Raven blushed and grabbed his hand, dragging him to the stairs, "come on, Cyborg is making waffles. Clearly the only way to celebrate getting our lives and freedom back.

...

The depths of Trigon's domain were dark and lifeless, a reflection of Trigon's own massive loss of power from the defeat he had suffered on Earth. He sat, shriveled and weak, upon a throne of skulls pondering his defeat.

"Belial... Ruskoff... Suge..." The vanquished demon lord growled as new plans began to form in the dark matter of his mind. "I have work for you."

...

AN: Now for the AU season 5. If you guys are getting tired of Jon-centric chapters, don't worry, the focus will be spreading out after the 'Titans Together' chapter. These beginning arcs are serving as his origins and characterization to fit him into the grander tale I have to tell.


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